Together
by MissJessWalker
Summary: After Sang receives horrible news from Dr. Roberts at what was supposed to be a routine check-up, she and the guys have to face an enemy they can't predict or control. Will they be able to face this battle and win-together? **By the end, there will be a HEA**
1. Chapter 1

**I was asked to cross-post this one, so here goes!**

 **Disclaimer: This is a fanfiction story for C.L. Stone's Ghost Bird series. I do not own the series or its characters. Those belong to C.L.**

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 **Chapter One**

Dr. Roberts' face was graver than I'd ever seen it. No light teasing or kind smiles passed through his lips. He alternated between glancing up at me with sad eyes and skimming over the paperwork on the clipboard in his hands. I sat on the examination table, unable to quell my fidgeting fingers. It didn't take a genius to figure out the doctor was about to deliver bad news. I was already wishing I hadn't turned down all the offers to accompany me to this appointment.

North had practically begged to take me-well, as close as North ever gets to begging for anything. Luke had tried to tempt me by promising to slip me candy whenever the doctor wasn't watching. Sean had pretty much whined, aghast at the possibility that his Mrs. Green wouldn't allow him to attend her check up. Kota had quietly offered to come with, rubbing his nose against mine as he asked. The only one who hadn't spoken to me about it was Owen, but that was only because Owen's eyes did all the talking. He'd have been more than happy to see the doctor with me.

But I'd turned them all down, sure they were worried over nothing. Sure, I'd been more tired than normal lately. Fatigue and stress went hand in hand. I just needed to calm down and relax more. And...well, yes. I'd been getting headaches kind of often. But that was what happened when you didn't eat enough, right? So all I'd get told would be to calm down and make sure I eat.

Never mind the sore throat I'd had for a while now. None of those things could be connected.

Judging by Dr. Roberts' expression now, I was wrong. Very, very wrong.

Finally, he sighed, pressing the clipboard to his chest and focusing on me. "Sang, I hate to have to tell you this."

I watched him, waiting for the rest, but he said nothing. "Tell me what?" He remained silent. "I'd rather you just tell me. It can't be worse than what I'm imagining."

He winced. "Don't be so sure about that." Placing the clipboard down on the counter behind him, the doctor leveled his gaze on me. "You're sick, Sang. I found a tumor-"

That was all I heard. Dr. Roberts kept talking, but I was stuck at that word. _Tumor_. I had a tumor. I wasn't licenced in medicine or anything, but I knew what that meant.

Cancer.

Yeah, I should have let one of them come with me. Or all of them. All of them would have been preferable. Now I have to…

I blinked at the doctor, who had clued into the fact that I was paying him zero attention. "I need to go," I gasped, standing unsteadily.

He rushed to grab my arm, helping me stay on my feet. "Are you sure you're alright to drive right now?"

Pulling in a deep breath, I squared my shoulders and stood tall even while I was falling apart on the inside. "I have to be. They need to know, and I need to tell them."

After studying me for a moment, he nodded. "Be careful. And just have Blackbourne call me once he knows. I'll explain it all then however you all need."

"Thank you," I said, meeting the man's compassionate gaze. He knew the moment the guys found out they'd be demanding answers. Asking questions. Aiming to get me healed. And I was lucky enough to have Dr. Roberts as my doctor, ready and willing to accomodate us, to help.

He gave my arm a light squeeze before ushering me out the door. From there, I somehow made it downstairs and to my car. No clue how it happened, but I was there. Sitting behind the wheel, I drew in some deep breaths, trying to steady my racing heart. I had to be strong. Falling apart right now would be bad. I needed to get them all together and break the news. Curling up in a ball in the hospital parking lot was not even a little helpful in accomplishing that.

Before I could dwell on how intense the urge was to start bawling right there, I snatched my phone from where I'd dropped it in the cupholder and dialed.

"Miss Sorenson," Owen's deep voice filled my ear. "Your appointment is over?"

"Yeah," I said, and then cursed the way my voice broke. Forcing my tone firmer, I repeated, "Yeah."

Of course Owen hadn't overlooked my first attempt. "Are you okay?"

 _No_. I wasn't. But telling him over the phone - or any of them before the others - was not the way this should go. So I dodged. "I'm about to head home. Can we have a family meeting?"

Silence from his end for a moment. I could almost hear the thoughts bouncing around in his head, trying to puzzle out what I was hiding. Then he asked, "When?"

I knew we were a busy family, but… "As soon as possible. This is important."

He didn't question me, likely taking note of the desperation I tried so hard to keep out of my voice. "I'll tell them all to drop what they're doing. Are you going to be alright getting here? I can have someone stop and pick you up. Or I could drive over. Whatever you'd prefer."

My lips twitched. Always so concerned. I let myself have that little moment, refusing to acknowledge that he actually had a reason to be concerned, even though he didn't know what it was exactly. "I can drive just fine. I'll see you soon."

A pause, and then his voice was warm. "See you soon. I love you."

I would never get tired of hearing him-or any of the guys, for that matter-saying that. "Love you, too." I ended the call with a heart full of love. Things were about to get difficult, but I'd let that exchange with Owen keep me sane until I got home.

That frame of mind lasted all of two minutes. At the first red light, I sat there stopped in the car while my mind raced ahead at full speed. It was all vague worry, considering all I knew was that I had a tumor. I didn't know where it was, exactly. I didn't know how we'd treat it. I didn't know what any part of the outlook could be like. I'd shut down in that office, and now my brain was working overtime filling in the gaps.

By the time I made it home, I was inches away from hyperventilating. I turned off the car, trying to get a handle on it so I could go in there and talk to the guys. I didn't want to worry them more than they were already going to be due to my illness.

After a few minutes of me trying to control my breathing, and finally gaining ground, a knock sounded on my window, startling me. Glancing over, I saw North on the other side, concern clouding his features. When he saw he had my attention, he pulled open the door. "You okay, Sang Baby? I've been waiting for you so we can walk in together."

Forcing my breath to even out, I nodded. "Are the others here already?"

Grabbing my hand, he helped me out of the car. "Everyone except Victor. He'll be here soon, though." He tucked me into his side, arm around my shoulders and holding me close. "A meeting?"

My mouth tipped up at the corners in a weak smile. "I'll talk to you all at once. Be patient."

A huffed sigh was North's only response as he opened the door for me. Walking in ahead of him, it was two seconds later that a large set of arms enfolded me in a warm embrace. "Aggele mou." A kiss landed on the top of my head. "Are you okay?"

The answer was still no, even in the middle of one of the best hugs on earth, so I just wrapped my arms around him, breathing in his pleasant Silas scent. For a moment, I had the illusion of calm.

And then that moment was invaded by Gabriel. "Trouble! What happened at that doctor's appointment that has us all dropping everything for a family meeting?" As he spoke, Gabriel tugged me out of Silas' arms-Silas letting him, since there was no way Gabriel would have succeeded otherwise-encasing my hand in his own as he led me toward the living room.

"I want to tell you all at once, Meanie," I said, nerves gnawing away at my stomach.

He swung our connected hands between us. "I guessed. So let's get this meeting started! Tell us about that appointment."

"Yeah," Sean agreed as we sat on one of the couches. "Let's hear about that appointment. I want all the details."

Nathan rolled his eyes from the couch across from ours. "We can't start until Victor gets here."

Victor was really all we were waiting for? Glancing around, I saw the room had, in fact, filled. North and Silas had made their way in here behind Gabriel and me. THey now sat on the couch next to Nathan, North with his arms crossed over his chest.

Shifting my gaze up, I spotted Luke standing a few feet behind North pulling a cookie out of his pocket. Kind of surprising it survived in there, but then again this was Luke. Of course he took care of his cookie. Lifting it to his lips, he paused when he caught me watching him. A wink and a smile were sent my way, and then he shoved the entire treat in his mouth. Stifling a giggle, I looked away, finding Kota standing next to Owen behind the third sofa in the large room.

"Come on, you can start telling, right?" Sean urged from my left side.

"Sean," Owen warned while Kota moved away from him, sitting in the single armchair in the room.

Sean leaned closer, his voice a whisper. "Come on, Pookie. You can whisper me some details."

Shaking my head, I kissed his cheek. "Sorry, but no."

"Thank fuck," North said. "About time you showed. The doc's been whining since Sang showed. Now we can start."

A hand landed on my shoulder, and I looked up to see Victor leaning over me from behind the couch. "Hey, Princess. Sorry I'm late." Dropping a light kiss on my lips, he smiled at me and then moved to take an empty seat next to where Owen had placed himself. All of the guys were sitting, and now their eyes focused on me.

Since I was leading this meeting, and since I had actual news, I figured it'd be better for me to stand where Owen usually stood in these situations. Once I got the center of the floor, though, I regretted that decision. I had their undivided attention, and while I needed it, this was not going to be fun. I wished the news I had to share was better. Happy. Not...life-threatening.

Oh god.

Life-threatening.

I had a tumor. I was sick. I could _die_.

My breathing sped up, causing a couple of the guys to voice concern, but it was Owen's voice that got through to me. "Sang?" When I didn't respond, he gently demanded, "Miss Sorenson."

I snapped my eyes to his, instantly calming a smidge. It took a few more moments for my breath to slow, Owen's gaze patient on mine all the while. Then he asked, "What is wrong?"

I was conflicted. They needed to know, but I didn't want to say the words. I didn't want this to be real.

"Sang." His voice was soft. "Tell us so we can fix it. Whatever it is, we'll make it better."

He was trying to put me more at ease, but his words had the opposite effect. Pointer finger itching to rise to my lower lip, I shook my head. "No. That's not… No."

Owen's eyes narrowed the slightest bit. "We will always take care of you, Miss Sorenson. You can count on us. Are you scared?"

Oh, he had no idea. Tears pooling in my vision, I nodded. As much as I didn't want to worry them more than needed, it would be foolish to deny it. The truth was obvious.

"Fuck, baby," North growled, leaning forward in his seat. I sensed he was barely holding himself back from walking over and sweeping me into his arms. Part of me wished he would, so he could be protective and I could hide against his chest, delaying what I was about to say. "What is wrong? We will fix it, I promise. Just tell us."

The faint pleading note in his vow pulled at my heart. Based on all their expressions, they were prepared to get started on fixing whatever issue I had the moment I let them in on what was up. Except there was nothing they could do.

But I wouldn't be able to explain that to them without telling them what was wrong.

Taking a deep breath, I stood straighter, hoping that'd help me gather some strength. It didn't work, but at least I had that illusion now. "Dr. Roberts…" My voice broke, and I cursed myself. So much for my attempt at strength-even if it'd been fake.

Sean jumped to his feet. "What did he do? Did he make you uncomfortable? Give you a shot? Tell some terrible jokes? Bad talk me? Did he try to convince you he is the better doctor? Because it's all bull, Pookie, don't you listen!"

Blinking at him, I processed what he'd just said. It was ridiculous, and at any other time, I would have laughed. Hugged him and assured that I liked him better than Dr. Roberts any day. But now was not the time for jokes. I decided to do this quick-like ripping off a bandaid. "Dr. Roberts did some tests, you know, since I've been tired and had that sore throat?"

They all nodded, Sean's expression going cautious. I think he was catching on that this was more serious than he'd been guessing. "He, um, he found… He told me, um…"

"You can say it, Princess," Victor said, love infusing his tone. "We're here for you no matter what." Rumbled agreements rang throughout the room.

And then it was quiet again, all eyes on me.

Another deep breath in.

"Dr. Roberts found a tumor. I have cancer."

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 **Thank you so much for reading! I'll post more soon!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: C.L. Stone owns the Ghost Bird series. Not me.**

* * *

 **Chapter Two**

"I have cancer," I repeated in a whisper, and then lost my weak attempt at composure and dissolved into tears. The guys were completely silent for barely a moment before the room burst into motion and sound.

The first thing I heard was Silas muttering in Greek, faster than I'd ever heard him speak in his language before. I suspected that even someone who knew the language would be lost in the speed. Gabriel was nearly shouting, a rant full of profanity. But I caught the shakes in his voice and knew he was scared. North had started at a low growl, and I looked over to see him literally trembling with rage. Unable to help myself, I released a whimper. Despite the bomb I'd just dropped, all of their eyes landed on me. Several of them moved toward me, but North made it first, pulling me tight against him. He still trembled, but he clearly paid that fact no attention as he stroked my hair while I cried.

After a few moments, I managed to pull in enough control to rest my chin on his shoulder instead of burying my face against his chest. From this position, I could see all the guys. Kota stared at Sean with wide eyes as the doctor spouted off medical knowledge, trying to piece together my news. Luke was rubbing his stomach, whining about how the cookie he'd scarfed down was not agreeing with the situation. Owen…

On Owen, my gaze stopped. He was sitting with perfect posture, frozen solid. His eyes were on me, but it was his entire expression that tore me apart. Owen, my unflappable Mr. Blackbourne, appeared terrified. Everyone could do nothing to hide their fear right then, but Owen… his prominent emotion sent a sharp pain stabbing through my chest.

I couldn't stand just stand there. Not when my men were falling apart around me.

Lifting my hands, I pushed lightly at North's chest. But of course, North being North, he didn't budge. I sucked in a breath and took a quick second to wipe my face on his shirt, needing to pull myself together. Even though I'd surely left snot and tears on his shirt, North again didn't react.

"North," I said softly. "Let me go."

His only response was to tighten his grasp.

Mouth near his ear, I said, "Please?"

A second passed and then he groaned. North didn't release me, but he leaned back enough to meet my eyes with his arms still around me. His expression challenged me for a good reason to let me go.

Gifting a small smile that I wasn't really feeling, I rested my hands on his chest between us. "I'm not done talking with everyone. I need us to regroup." Pausing, an idea popped into my head. "Can you help me get their attention?"

After studying me closely, he turned to face the rest of our family, only one arm left around my waist. " _Hey_!" he shouted. Had I not anticipated the sound, I'd have flinched. "Shut the fuck up. Sang Baby's got something to say."

True to form, they all quieted, looking over at me. It was reminiscent of no more than ten minutes before when I'd been gathering the nerve to speak. I wished I could give them better news now, like I'd made a horrid joke or Dr. Roberts' had _thought_ he'd found a tumor but it wasn't anything to worry about. Unfortunately, I didn't have anything like that to say at that point.

"I have cancer," I told them again, because now that I had their attention I couldn't figure out exactly what to tell them. Several of the guys flinched. I forged ahead anyway. Someone had to be strong here, and it was obviously my turn. "Dr. Roberts found a tumor." My mind spun, reaching for something to say, but I had nothing more. I'd left the office too fast, hadn't paid enough attention.

Sean spoke up helpfully. "Where is the tumor, Sang?" His tone was curious and non judgemental, though definitely more serious than usual. Fitting for the topic.

Clearing my throat, I was intensely aware of the soreness there. "My throat."

"Did he say anything about the area around it? Treatment? Tell me everything." He leaned forward in his seat, and I was vaguely surprised he was able to remain seated at all.

Helplessly, I shrugged. Why did I have to freak out at the appointment? This conversation would have gone so much better if I'd had more to offer.

Standing, Sean moved to stand in front of me, hands on my shoulders. "Do you not remember? Or has he not told you?" His fingers gave a reassuring squeeze. "I really wish I'd gone with you to that appointment."

"Fuck, yeah," Gabriel said from his place, and Sean stepped aside so I could see the rest of the guys again. "I can't believe you had to get that news alone, Trouble."

Silas frowned. "Are you okay, Aggele?"

North barked something at him in Greek, and Silas winced. "You know what I mean."

Before North could argue more, I tried to answer. "I… I'm… well, I'm not okay. Mostly, I'm confused." At that moment, it was true. No doubt I was scared, but more than that I could not get a grasp on what was happening. I'd have cursed myself yet again for not listening to more of what Dr. Roberts had to say, but I was starting to annoy myself with my impression of a broken record.

Owen stood up, drawing our attention to him. The tortured expression was gone, replaced by a calmly determined mask. He wasn't fooling me-I knew on the inside he was falling apart just as much as I was-but I appreciated his effort. He was getting a grasp on his regular self. Taking charge and working things out. Thank goodness, since I was seriously fumbling in my attempt to do so. "We will find out more. I'll go call Dr. Roberts and arrange a meeting. He'll give us answers and we'll make a plan for treatment." Striding over, he stopped in front of me, bending to look me directly in the eye. "We will get through this, Miss Sorenson. _You_ will get through this. We will all be here along the way to help you however we can. You can count on it." He leaned over to give me a quick and soft kiss, then whispered, "I love you."

Owen stepped out of the room, presumably to make the phone call he'd mentioned, and now I was left alone with my eight other men. Sean, who had moved even farther aside when Owen walked over, took ahold of my hand. "He's right, Pookie. We've got your back. You're strong, and you have us. We'll do everything we can to get you well." He sounded hopeful, but I got the feeling it was forced, which was probably the truth. I knew he and all the others would do what they could, but there wasn't much for them to do.

That said, it felt relieving to know I had their unconditional support through what I was facing. To know they'd be there no matter what. That they'd love me through it all.

Gabriel rose from where he sat, arms stretched toward me. "Oy, Trouble, come on. Give me some love."

With a smile that was getting less forced, I tried to move toward him, but North's arm around my waist didn't release me the way Sean's hand did. Glancing over, I raised a brow. North just shook his head.

Gabriel sighed, and I looked over to see his eyes narrowed on North. "Fuck. I thought we were past problems with sharing, North."

"Not now, Gabriel," North growled, tugging me closer to his side.

"You have got to be fucking kidding me," Gabriel laughed, but there was no humor in it.

Again, North pulled me closer. "Shut up, Gabe."

Gabriel started to step forward, but Luke placed a hand on his shoulder to hold him back. "Whoa, chill out."

My gaze kept shifting back and forth, watching the situation unfold, but what was I supposed to do? We hadn't had a problem like this in a long while. Years. We'd eased into our balance a few years ago. There was friction to work through sometimes, as expected, but for the most part we didn't have these types of problems anymore. I wasn't really itching to have one then.

But North wasn't letting me go.

Silas stepped up beside us, murmuring in Greek, tyring to help diffuse the situation on North's end. North grunted answers in response, but I couldn't understand any of it. The little bits of Greek I'd picked up were nowhere near the level I needed to be on to follow their conversation. The good news was that at least North wasn't pulling me in tighter anymore. I wasn't uncomfortable or anything, but if he'd still been tightening his hold that would have been steps in the wrong direction.

Sean caught my gaze. "You okay?" he asked quietly.

I nodded, returning my focus to Gabriel. He was talking animatedly to Luke, waving his arms. Nathan had joined Luke in talking him down. Victor was standing off to the side, surveying the situation intently. Preparing himself to help if he saw a way he could. Kota was walking my way. When he stood between North and Gabriel, he stopped, hands up.

"Hey!" he yelled, gaining the attention of everyone except the two people he wanted to look at him. Fingers lifting to his mouth, he whistled. "Hey!" he repeated.

"Fuck, Kota," Gabriel complained.

North said nothing, but at least he was focused on Kota.

Kota glanced between North and Gabriel, then settled his eyes on North. "What's going on, North? Gabriel has a point-we haven't had a problem like this in a while."

North's jaw twitched. "What the fuck does that have to do with anything?"

Kota's hand came up to push his glasses up. "Why are you doing this right now?"

"That's a dumbass question."

Kota didn't react. "It's a valid question."

"You are honestly asking me why I'm doing this right now? After what Sang Baby found out?" North scoffed. "Of course I want to hold her! What I don't understand is why you won't leave me the fuck alone about it."

Kota opened his mouth to respond, but Gabriel shouted over whatever he'd been about to say. "How shitty is that? You aren't the only one that loves her, North! We're all worried and scared and want to hug the fuck out of her. You've had your turn. Stop being an asshole."

Kota opened and closed his mouth a couple of times, and then simply shrugged. "Basically."

That was so unlike Kota, to not at least try to rephrase in a less offensive way, that I couldn't stop myself from letting out a giggle. Kota's eyes widened slightly as he turned to smile at me.

"What I don't understand," Owen voice said from the doorway, "is why none of you have asked what Miss Sorenson wants."

Kota's smile faded as it turned to a gape. "What?"

Owen's steely eyes leveled on Kota. "I understand that we're all worried right now. We have a right to be. And I understand Mr. Taylor's urge to keep her close. I also understand Mr. Coleman's desire to do the same, and his anger when North isn't being reasonable." North grunted, but Mr. Blackbourne paid him no mind. "What I am having trouble understanding is why you and North and Gabriel and everyone else, except Sean who asked Sang if she was okay, aren't asking Sang what she wants. Maybe she wants to stay with North. Maybe she wants to go around and talk to everyone. Maybe she wants a moment alone. Why haven't you asked _her_?"

Kota and the rest blinked, processing Owen's words. Well, except Sean who winked at me. In that moment, the act was so out of place-and so _Sean_ -I had to stifle the urge to giggle again.

Oblivious to my humor, North released a heavy breath. "Damn it." He rested his face on my hair, breathing me in. Leaving a kiss there in his wake, he leaned back. "You want me to let you go, don't you?"

Sheepishly, I shrugged. "It's not so much that I want you to let me go as I want to check on everyone else, too," I told him softly. "This whole thing is difficult."

Frowning, he rubbed his hand down my arm. "You don't need to worry about us. We need to take care of you."

I shook my head. "I want you guys to be alright."

"We will be," he murmured. "As long as you are."

Ignoring the weight those words added to my shoulders, I nodded. "I'll do my best."

Another heavy breath left his mouth, this time blowing over my face. "Oh, Baby. I know you will. I know." Dropping another kiss to my hair, he gave me a quick squeeze before letting me go. "Love you, Sang Baby."

"And I love you," I said as he moved to stand beside Silas. Turning, I planned to go to Gabriel, but he swept me into his arms first.

"Trouble," he said.

"Meanie."

"Shit." His grip on me tightened.

"Mr. Coleman, I believe she needs to breathe," Owen said with the barest trace of humor from beside us.

Instantly, Gabriel's grasp loosened. "Right, right. Sorry."

I shook my head. "It's okay. I could breathe just fine." While what I said was true, I was grateful Owen had stepped in. Any tighter and my breathing likely would have been in jeopardy.

"I need a word, anyway," Owen said.

Gabriel scowled. "I literally just got my hands on her, Mr. B. Surely I get her for at least a few more minutes."

"She is not a possession," Owen warned. "But you can stay right here for this." He met my eyes, his steely orbs making my heart flutter. I loved those eyes. "My call with Dr. Roberts went fast. He'd been expecting my call. We can head to the hospital and meet with him whenever we're ready."

Sean, who'd apparently been listening, asked, "Phil has an open schedule? I find that hard to believe."

"He said he'd make the time to speak with us. As I said, he was expecting my call."

All three of them looked at me, and I blushed. "I might have been a little out of it when he tried to talk to me about…" I couldn't say it. Why couldn't I say it? I'd already broken the news. There was no reason to hold back now.

Gabriel pushed some hair away from my face. "Don't you worry, Trouble. We've got your back."

Sean nodded. "That's right. I know all the right questions to ask. We'll find out all we need to know and get this ball rolling."

It was almost shocking how optimistic they were acting, but I figured they were trying to take this one step at a time. A logical approach. First, find out the full extent of what was wrong with me. Second, find out what to do about it. Third, go through with the treatment. Sounded manageable when put that way. Realistically, I knew it'd be much more challenging. But for now, I didn't need to think about that. One step at a time.

"Okay," I said, a new determination surging through me. "Let's go see Dr. Roberts."

* * *

 **Thank you so much for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3

**This one's for Marymac0511. Thank you so much for reading and reviewing! I'm so glad you're enjoying the story :)**

 **Disclaimer: The Ghost Bird series does not belong to me. It belongs to C.L. Stone.**

* * *

 **Chapter Three**

Half an hour later, after making it around to my guys for hugs and comforting words, I was in Owen's car with Sean and Nathan.

"They're turning into assholes," Nathan said from beside me in the backseat, one arm around my shoulders. There'd been a brief argument to decide who would get the coveted position, since it was already a given I would ride in Owen's car. If Owen hadn't spoken up and divided everyone into the vehicles himself, we probably would have still been at home arguing. Well, they would have been arguing. I probably would have been hyperventilating in a corner or something by this point.

"The behavior makes sense," Owen said from the driver's seat. "We've moved past petty disagreements like the ones arising now, but their reoccurrence is spurred by fear. We have grown comfortable in our life. Secure in our positions. Insecurities still come up occasionally, but they are much more manageable. However, with Miss Sorenson in such a precarious state, it is understandable that such issues would arise."

Nathan sighed. "I get that, I do. But I think it's sucky that they are acting ridiculous and adding stress. Sang doesn't need this."

I waved a hand in a nonchalant manner. "I'm fine. I know this is a hard time for all of us."

"No, Pookie." Sean turned around in the passenger's seat to face me. "This isn't a situation where you should have to worry about us. Right now, we are here to take care of you."

I opened my mouth to respond, but Nathan spoke up first. "Yes, exactly. You need us to keep it together. Not get into fights at the drop of a hat."

"We will get through this," Owen declared, voice full of certainty, as if there was no doubt about it. "The news is fresh. Once we get everything sorted and Sang starts treatment, things will settle. We just found out today. Be patient." He paused, then met my eyes in the rearview mirror. "But they are correct, Sang. I know it is in your nature to be appeasing, but right now is a time for us to support you. And we will."

For some reason, his words seemed on the verge of pleading to me. Like he suspected I'd lost faith in their support and he was trying to convince me that all of them would be there for me no matter what. Which was ridiculous, honestly. Of course my men would support me. Seemed he was thrown off kilter himself, set back to a time when he was trying to win me over to joining their team and building our relationship. But I didn't dwell on it. I knew Owen, and the rest of my guys, meant well. So I told Owen, "I know. I never expected anything less."

Though he did not respond verbally, I saw his shoulders lift and fall with a sigh. In that moment, I was again reminded that my unflappable Mr. Blackbourne was, in fact, human. Just like the rest of us. With worries, doubts, and fears. He was simply adept at concealing them.

We rode the rest of the way in a content silence, all of us lost in our own thoughts. I kept mine on the lighter side, away from what was about to happen, what I was facing. Instead I focused on the cars and buildings we passed, Nathan's around around me and his fingers in my mouth. His teeth grazing over my own fingers. Simple, easy.

And then we pulled into the hospital parking lot. "Okay, Pookie," Sean said, opening my door and offering a hand to help me out. "You ready?"

No. I wasn't. But I couldn't exactly say that, so I sucked it up and put my hand in his. "Let's go."

North and Victor had chosen spots nearby and all of my husbands were grouped around me as we entered the hospital. Sean kept me tucked close to his side as we followed Owen through the Academy wing's halls, and Kota walked close to my other side. Our arms brushed occasionally, and the contact warmed my heart. Eight years together, four years marries, and a simple brushing of arms with Kota-with any of them-could make my heart happy.

On the way to Dr. Roberts' office, we passed a woman in a hospital gown walking slowly down the hallway. She was pretty and seemed close to our age. I smiled to her as we drew closer, confident it wouldn't look forced since my thoughts had been so centered on Kota and his warmth.

Her face broke out into a grin, though, and she paused in her path down the hall to say to Sean, "Hey, Dr. Green. This is a pleasant surprise. Here to check on your favorite patient?"

Pulling me tighter into his side, Sean gave her a small smile before awarding me with a great big grin. "Taking my lovely Mrs. Green here in for some tests with Dr. Roberts." His smile turned stale. "We're in for a rough journey."

The woman looked at me, and I thought I caught a flash of jealousy in her gaze. "Oh, so this is the infamous Mrs. Green. He talks about you constantly. Makes you sound so perfect, some of us have been wondering if you're real." Her tone was lighthearted, but there was an edge to it that made me wish I had a good response.

As it was, however, nothing came to mind. So I just stood there,leaning into Sean a wee bit more than necessary, as he said, "That's because she is perfect." He dropped a sweet kiss on my cheek and darn it, a blush began to rise.

But Gabriel stopped it in its tracks by somehow slipping in between Kota and me. "Fuck yeah she is." His eyes were narrowed on the patient. I was appalled. This woman was in the hospital. Shouldn't Gabriel have tried to be at least a little more friendly?

She apparently gave Gabriel's stare no mind as she kept her attention rapt on Sean. "That's sweet of you to say. I'm sorry you're headed for a rough patch, Doc. If you need someone to talk to...or anything...feel free to let me know." Okay, now that one was obvious. Even Owen's eyebrows lifted as he looked between this lady and Sean. We all trusted Sean unequivocally, so we weren't worried he was truly doing anything he wasn't supposed to, but he did have the habit of going over the top with his friendliness-to the point of flirting. Did he lead this woman on? He was probably in for some teasing later.

We all watched him as he smiled politely her way. "That won't be necessary. I've got my wife and my wife's got me, and we've both got our team. That's all we need." And with that, he tugged me with him past her, us leading the way now instead of Owen.

"She's been coming on strong her entire stay here," Sean told me quietly. "She's a floater right now-in the Academy but without a team. She'd tried many but never finds a place to settle."

Kota took his place beside me again. "Not hard to see why. No tact."

"Even if she was unable to catch on to Dr. Green's disinterest," Owen built off Kota's observation, "Mr. Coleman's annoyance was not subtle."

"Not was glaring back there, too," Kota added.

Sean nodded. "She gained no fans in our team. She'll probably remain teamless unless she reins it in. But that's not important right now. You are." Stopping in front of Dr. Roberts' office door, Sean turned to face me, resting his hands on my shoulders. Leveling his gaze with mine, he said, "This conversation is going to be difficult. I know it's going to be overwhelming and hard to grasp. But stick with me, alright, Pookie?" He waited for me to nod slowly before continuing. "I've got you. I'll ask questions, and I'm sure the others will, too. Anything you miss will get explained. Just let us know what you're feeling. Alright?"

I searched his eyes for a moment, not really looking for anything in particular. I only wanted to keep myself calm. As he watched me, though,I found sincerity. Determination. Love. Seeing that directed solely at me gave me strength. Looking around, I saw the same emotions reflected in Owen's watchful gaze. And staring at me from behind Kota's lenses. They even burned within Victor's fiery eyes.

For the first time since receiving the news from Dr. Roberts that morning, I felt ready to deal with what came next. "Okay," I told Sean.

He studied me briefly before turning to knock on Dr. Roberts' door. It swung open only a few seconds later, the kind faced doctor appearing grieved on the other side. "Come on in, friends." We filed into the room, all ten of us joining him, most of them standing, but Sean and I taking the two seats in front of the desk. Nathan dropped himself into the only other open seat by the wall while the doctor sat in his own chair behind the desk.

"So," he said, "she has told you of her illness."

Sean sat up straighter, expression growing serious. "Sang has given a broad classification of her condition. We need you to fill in the gaps on everything else."

Dr. Roberts nodded. "That's what I'm here for. What did she tell you, exactly?"

"She has a tumor."

The doctor's eyebrows hitched up. "That's all?"

Squirming in my chair, I said, "I didn't really catch anything else that you told me."

A large, warm hand fell on my shoulder and gave a reassuring squeeze. "And that's alright, aggele mou. We know you were overwhelmed. Dr. Roberts will explain everything for us again right now." And with that, he turned his eyes to said doctor.

He gave me a little smile. "Yes, it is quite alright." Pausing, he shuffled some folders in front of him until he found the one he wanted. He opened it and read for a quick second. "So Sang has a tumor in her throat. It's not very large, but it is already having an effect on her. That's where her sore throat comes from, and the cancerous cells are hacking away at her immune system, making her fatigued."

"So are you thinking to remove it?" Sean cut in.

Not appearing bothered in the slightest by the interruption, Dr. Roberts nodded. "Yes. Removal followed by chemotherapy to wash out lingering cancerous effects." He went right on talking, but just like earlier, my mind shut down. Cancerous cells. Effects. Chemotherapy. This was my reality, and I didn't know how to deal with it.

Glancing around, I saw them all watching Dr. Roberts as he spoke with rapt attention. Just as Sean had promised, they were catching everything for me, speaking up and asking when they had a question or simply needed clarification. How could they face this so adeptly while I struggled to focus enough to catch what was being said?

I needed to get myself together. Call back that strength that surged through me before entering this office. Sure, I was incredibly lucky to have my men here, taking in information for me so they could ease me along this situation as needed. But they weren't going to be able to go through the treatment for me. The... _removal_ followed by _chemotherapy_. They could be there to hold my hands and wipe my tears, but everything else was all me.

And that was horrifying.

But there wasn't anything anyone could do about it.

After allowing my inner pep talk to sink in, I finally averted my attention back to the main conversation in the room as Dr. Roberts and Sean stood. They were both looking at me expectantly. Embarrassed, I blinked up at Sean, knowing my face was turning red.

A smile adorning his attractive face, he leaned down and stage-whispered, "I know I'm dreamy, Pookie, but we've got to take you for some scans now. Can't stay here and stare at me all day, unfortunately."

I should have been expecting a line like that, since this was _Sean_ , but somehow it caught me off guard anyway and I giggled.

Face twisting into a look of mock seriousness, he stooped down lower, eyes twinkling directly into mine. "Oh, don't you start that now. You won't stop until it's time to sleep, and then we'll never get this scan done. You need to be conscious and still for this, Mrs. Green."

Rolling my eyes, I rose to my feet, nudging Sean back a tiny bit as I did so but mostly rising to stand flush against him. This time my cheeks heated for an entirely different reason.

Sean's eyes heated, too, but his only action in response was to drop a kiss close to my ear and murmur, "Later."

Our entourage filed out of Dr. Roberts' office, this time the doctor filing along with us, and we all headed to where my scan for...whatever was happening. On the way, I decided it'd probably be a good idea to ask what this was all about.

"To check out the tumor. Both position and area around it. It'll help determine the prognosis for chemo and dictate the plan for operation when Phil goes in to remove the damn thing." He scratched at his chin. "Though there will surely be another scan after the operation to make a more solid plan of action for the chemo part. Right now, it's an effort to gauge what to expect on that end, and what will happen before it."

Okay, that wasn't hard to understand. Maybe missing nearly everything the doctor said for the second time that day wouldn't be a disaster. I could handle these secondhand explanations just fine.

From there, things seemed to happen in a whirlwind while also moving slow as molasses. We had to wait a small portion of time for the room where I'd get scanned to be ready. Then I had to change into a hospital gown, those dreadful things, and lay on a cold table while a big machine did its job. Afterward, we were all gathered in the room with the developed scans, Dr. Roberts outlining what the images meant.

I watched him gesticulate and his mouth move to form his explanations, but for some reason I couldn't grasp what he was actually saying. I caught keywords-the same ones from before like _tumor_ and _cancerous cells_ -but connecting it all into what my guys seemed to be absorbing like sponges was not working for me.

This time, I didn't stress over it, though. Sean-or Owen or Silas or Luke or literally any of the others-would catch me up to speed.

But not before I had another moment like before where everyone was staring at me expectantly while I was oblivious, lost in my own thoughts.

"Phil asked if you had any questions, Trouble," Gabriel took mercy on me by saying.

"Oh." I shook my head. "No. No questions." Hard to have questions when I caught next to nothing of what he said in the first place.

I felt eyes on me and knew I wasn't fooling anyone, but Dr. Roberts didn't question me. "Alright then, I'll see you next week for extraction surgery. You take it easy until then."

I forced a smile and thanked him, as did the others, and then we left. In the car on the way home, Sean turned around to ask, "You weren't listening to a word he said, were you?"

Sighing, I relaxed further against Luke, who'd traded places with Nathan for the ride home after a whispered debate in the parking lot that I was pretty sure I wasn't supposed to hear. "Nope. But I understand what you told me. I have a grasp on what's going to happen. Take the tumor out, then go through chemo. Do I really need to know all the technical details?"

Sean looked a little skeptical, but Luke answered before he could. "No you do not. You go with whatever you're comfortable with, sweetie."

Owen agreed, "If you are not interested in the long winded explanations Dr. Roberts gave us today, we can spare you those. However, there is more that needs to be discussed."

Sean took that chance to jump in. "Yes, exactly. Chemo isn't the end of the line."

In the back of my mind, I'd figured that, but I hadn't wanted to study it too closely. But talking about it now was probably a good idea. Even if I wanted to be a chicken. "Right. What happens after?"

"We wait a specific period of time, and then you get tests done to see if the treatment worked. If it did, you'll be considered in remission." He hesitated to clear his throat, the action audible in the quiet of the car. "If it didn't...well, we figure that out then. But hopefully we won't have to."

Luke dropped a kiss to my hair as I rested my head on his shoulder. "She'll be okay."

"Luke-"

"So the tumor is being removed next week?" I asked, not allowing Sean to finish whatever he'd planned to say. Luke should be able to believe in whatever outcome he wanted. Goodness knew I was hoping for the same. Holding a positive outlook wasn't a bad idea. Not like Luke wasn't aware of what might happen-he'd actually listened to the doctor, after all.

"Yes," Owen answered. "Next week."

"You'll be in the hospital for a day or two afterward," Sean added. "But then you'll be released for about a week before you go in again to start chemo."

I weighed my next question, then decided to just go with it. "Did he talk about what chemo would be like?"

Owen and Sean shared a look. "Yes," Sean said but luckily stopped there.

"I don't want to talk about it now." Pulling in a deep breath, I relished in Luke's vanilla scent. "For now, I'll focus on the extraction surgery."

"Okay," Luke said.

"We can go over chemo details at a later time," Owen added.

Sean nodded. "For now, we'll just think about next week."

"Yeah," I agreed. One step at a time. "Next week."

* * *

 **Thank you so much for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. The Ghost Bird series belongs to C.L. Stone.**

* * *

 **Chapter Four**

Victor pulled the covers over Sang, patting them gently in place to make certain she was comfortable, before stepping back from his bed. He was pleased seeing her there, as he always was, with her hair over his pillows, her face peaceful. Devoid of the worry and uncertainty that'd been dripping from it all day. She'd been out of it almost the entire time at Dr. Roberts' office, but he couldn't blame her for that. Victor had had a hard time keeping up himself-he could only imagine how overwhelming it must have been to be the one the doctor referred to. To be the one sick.

Sang. His Princess. Sick. With _cancer_. The pain he'd been fighting back all day shot through him at the thought, striking his chest, his heart. His Princess was sick, and there was nothing he could do. He hated how helpless he felt. When she'd broken the news to them, the emotion had crashed over Victor like a tidal wave and he'd wanted to rage in a way North would have been proud of. Cuss as if he were Gabriel. Heck, he'd even considered doing Kota's counting technique because his head would not stop rattling around with thoughts he didn't want to face.

All that had stopped him was her face. Unsurprising, considering she was _Sang_. He'd do anything for her. Including manage the grand task of not flipping out amidst the sea of fear the entire family had been drowning in earlier that day. Instead, Victor kept an eye out as things escalated, prepared to help keep it controlled. Sang needed a stable support system. Victor wouldn't be the one to shake that. Hopefully, once the situation settled into everyone's minds, all of his brothers would come to the same conclusion.

Victor suspected that was what the family meeting awaiting him downstairs was about. It was rare that they had meetings without Sang present, but after the day she'd been through, and with the struggle ahead, it made sense to not weigh her down with anything more than necessary. Victor and the rest of the men could handle keeping themselves together without worrying their wife.

 _Wife_. Just thinking the word still made him beam with pride, even after four years. His Princess was his wife.

His phone vibrating in his pocket pulled Victor from the happy trail his thoughts were headed down. Pulling it out, he glanced down to see two messages.

Mr. Blackbourne: What is taking so long? Is Sang okay?

Gabriel: What are you doing up there? Did Trouble wake up? You lucky bastard.

Victor smirked. Honestly, he'd been shocked when Sang requested to stay with him tonight. They'd been home from Dr. Roberts' office for a couple of hours, lounging around the house-or pretending to lounge around the house. Tension had filled the air as everyone took their own time to process the day. Then they'd all sat down to a dinner, the entire family around their large table. Another rare occurrence. Normally at least one or two of them would be out on assignment during dinner, unless it was a holiday. Seeing Sang's appreciative glances around the table as she picked at her food made Victor want to encourage the practice to happen more often, though.

Afterward, she stood right up and announced that she was sleepy and wanted to snuggle on the couch to watch a movie. Aiming a cute little smile Victor's way, she'd added, "And then I want to stay with you tonight, Victor."

No one had questioned her, and Victor had been elated. He hadn't gotten her in his bed in at least a week. They'd eaten some meals together, but he missed falling asleep with her in his arms and waking up with her head against his chest, Sang's big, green eyes boring into his with heavy lids as she awoke. She was beautiful.

Barely five minutes into the movie, Sang had already found her way into slumber, nestled up against Victor's side. She'd stayed there until about halfway through the movie when Owen had stood and announced there was to be a family meeting for the male members, which would start just as soon as Victor got back down from taking her up to bed.

He tapped at his phone screen, assuring Owen and Gabriel nothing was wrong. Sang was asleep, and he was on his way. Pausing before leaving the room, Victor dropped a soft kiss on Sang's cheek, murmuring, "Sweet dreams, Princess."

All eight of Victor's brothers were again gathered around the large table downstairs, chatting amongst themselves while waiting for him. Once he took his seat, Mr. Blackbourne told them to quiet down. "The topic of this meeting is obvious, so I'm not even going to try to ease into it. Sang is sick. It is serious, the outlook is questionable, and we need to work through this together so we can help _her_ through it." He narrowed his gaze on North and then Gabriel. "Fighting over her time and attention is not helpful. Nor is purposely keeping her to yourself. Sang needs us to be a source of strength. She needs to be able to lean on us. And she should be able to do that without harboring concern for how any of us will react."

"Cancer…" Sean choked out. "Cancer is a fucking _beast_ , guys." He paused for a moment, seeming to get ahold of himself. Victor was somewhat surprised-the doctor wasn't one to swear often. That was more in North or Gabriel's wheelhouse. "We can't be fighting with one another. Pookie's already going to be going through hell. Do you really want to add to it?"

North growled, a fist falling onto the table with a bang. "Of course we fucking don't, Doc. I don't know if you noticed, but mine and Gabe's little spat happened barely five goddamn minutes after she let us know that she's _fighting for her life._ Cut us some slack."

Gabriel nodded in agreement. "And Lord knows _you_ aren't perfect."

Dr. Green's brows rose in curiosity. "Oh, really?"

To Victor's surprise, Silas was the one to speak up. "That Academy chick at the hospital didn't exactly help matters."

Kota tried to break in then, to halt that veiled accusation in its tracks, but Dr. Green spoke right over him. "You are being dramatic. Pookie knows I've only got eyes for her. She's my one and only Mrs. Green."

"Then why the fuck do you have to act so overly friendly, huh?" Gabriel demanded. "It was funny when we were teenagers, but you can tone it down now, bro. We're fucking married."

The Doc's eyebrows slammed down as his face filled with anger. "I know I'm married. I love my wife. I've loved her since the day I laid eyes on her. Not that you would know how that feels…"

North was on his feet so quick, his chair fell backward behind him. He rested his fisted hands on the table in front of him as he leaned forward. "You better not be saying what I think you're saying."

"You aren't the only one who loves aggele mou," Silas said, clearly agitated but trying to keep calm.

Sean rolled his eyes. "I'm not stupid. I'm just saying...I was first."

North released a furious grunt, moving around the table and toward Sean. Silas, diplomacy winning over his own anger, stepped in front of North, stopping him in his tracks. He said something in Greek, to which North shook his head and grumbled something back. Victor couldn't understand a single word of it, but based on the way North was murdering Dr. Green with his eyes, Victor guessed it had to do with the doctor.

Though Silas had North contained for the time being, Gabriel was still spitting mad. "Get down off your damn high horse. At least we don't put her in situations like _that_."

"She was fine!" Sean exclaimed. North and Silas stopped their rumbling to glance over at him. Victor had a feeling they were all thinking the same thing, except for Sean. "Hell, she probably thought it was kind of funny. She knows how I am. She knows I'd never…" he trailed off before repeating, this time less certain. "She was fine."

Victor, remembering the way his Princess had been speechless, the way she'd pressed herself tighter into Sean's side, couldn't hold back from saying, "She actually seemed sort of uncomfortable." He hated to add to the argument-this was definitely not the topic he wanted to focus on-and his tone held a tinge of apology.

Kota, also seeming reluctant to feed the fire, said, "She did."

Sean, mouth set in a firm line, which was so out of the ordinary for him, looked over to Owen. "They're overreacting, aren't they? Just being extra protective because Pookie's sick and all."

Owen's steely gaze held none of the hesitancy Victor and Kota had expressed. "Actually, they're not. She appeared uncertain during that confrontation. I do think you handled it well, however. Maybe it might be a good idea to dial back your flirtations, but that is something to think about by yourself later." He looked around at all of the men. "We aren't here to argue. We are here to prepare ourselves to help Miss Sorenson. Mr. Taylor, Mr. Korba-return to your seats."

North took a second to budge, but Silas murmured something to him that got him right on moving. With everyone back in their places, the scene was nearly identical to how it'd been when the meeting had started. Only now Dr. Green appeared lost in thought, North looked like he wanted to run around punching brick walls, and Gabriel glared at Sean every time he looked in Sean's direction.

If Owen noticed the change in atmosphere, he didn't comment. Like Victor, he was obviously more interested in what was important. "With Sang having surgery next week, and then beginning chemotherapy soon after, I believe it would be wise to cut back on assignments."

There was a minute of silence as they took that in, but no one disagreed. "I know I want to be around for her," Nathan said. "So, yeah, less assignments would be a good idea."

"We'll still need to pick up some," Kota said, seemingly lost in thought as he considered the situation. "Keep our favors up."

Victor responded "Not for money reasons. I know what I have, what _we_ have, isn't worth much right now, but…" He released a strangled half laugh. "At least we don't have to worry about that."

Kota's gaze was gentle as it settled on Victor. "No, not for anything money related. It's just good to keep our Academy relations strong when we can."

"Even so," Owen said, reaching up to adjust his glasses. "I am positive they would understand cutting back."

"Family first," Luke recited.

"Exactly."

To Victor's surprise, Kota turned back to him. "We all feel useless right now, you know that, right?"

Victor felt the urge to let out another bitter sound, but his throat closed up. He did not doubt that his brothers were struggling with similar emotions to his own. Knowing that didn't make it any easier to deal with, though. Sang was sick. Victor, who would give anything and everything for her, could not fix it.

"Seriously," Sean spoke up, coming out of his reverie. "I'm a doctor. A _doctor_. And the best I can do right now is reiterate her medical predicament so she understands."

Along with the pain he felt in his chest, a trickle of sympathy filled him for Sean. And then, glancing around at the faces of his brothers who were obviously feeling the same as both Sean and Victor, that trickle turned into a surge. "This sucks."

"It does." The agreement came from Mr. Blackbourne, and Victor's lips almost twitched into a weak smile. Owen, agreeing with saying something sucked? Had he ever done that before? "But I can assure you Sang is feeling much worse about her condition."

And with that, any chance of humor left Victor. "We need to be a stable support unit for her. It's not going to be easy for any of us, but we need to make this as easy for Sang as we can."

Kota nodded in agreement. "And we can always talk to each other if we have a problem. We don't need to resort to fighting."

North grunted. "Blowing off steam isn't always a bad thing."

Luke grinned mischievously. "There are better ways to blow off steam, little brother."

"Shut the fuck up."

"Now is not the time," Gabriel warned. Then he added, "Though that is so true."

"Shut up," North repeated.

Owen ignored the exchange and said, "We need to keep things controlled. We are all Sang's support system, but it is also important to remember that we are supporting one another, as well. Which adds more to the reasoning behind taking on less assignments. We need to be here for our family. For each other. All of us."

"Plus," Nathan said as he leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms over his chest. "It'll probably be harder to focus knowing Peanut's going through shit. Wouldn't want to botch a job because our minds are somewhere else."

Owen nodded. "Good point."

Victor was on board, but one concern tugged at his mind. "Sang is not going to like that."

Luke barked out a short laugh. "Yeah, she's going to hate us taking off work because of her. You know how she is." They did. If she thought they were holding back from anything due to her, she'd be upset.

"We're not just doing it for her," Nathan said. "We're doing it for all of us. And, as I said, the sake of the assignments."

"Sang's not going to see it that way," Luke replied.

Owen sighed. "I see no reason for any of us to bring it up."

Gabriel frowned. "You want us to lie?"

North rolled his eyes. "No. We just don't point it out to her."

"If she asks, feel free to explain it to her. We are not hiding anything." Owen looked around the table. "We listed our reasoning right here. If she wonders, any one of us can tell her what we discussed. If she disagrees or gets angry or upset, send her to me. I will talk her through it."

The men sat there, silent for a moment. Then Silas blew out a breath and all eyes turned to him. "Poor aggele."

North glared at Silas. "She will be just fine."

"It's going to be tough, but I think Pookie will make it through this," Sean said.

Gabriel added, "And we will be right by her side every fucking step of the way."

"Miss Sorenson is strong. Do not count her out yet." Mr. Blackbourne stood. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have some calls to make. With Sang's surgery next week, I think it prudent to begin our cut back as soon as possible."

As soon as he was out of the room, Silas said sadly, "I wasn't counting her out. I am just saying...poor aggele." Victor saw the sorrow in his brother's expression-not for a loss, but for the fact that their wife had to go through this at all. Victor could definitely relate.

Luke leaned over and pat Silas' shoulder reassuringly. "I know, bro. But she'll be fine."

"She will," Victor agreed, hoping with everything in him they were right.

* * *

 **Thank you for reading!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Thank you to everyone reading this! Here's another chapter :)**

 **Disclaimer: The Ghost Bird series does not belong to me. It belongs to C.L. Stone. These characters are all hers. I'm just writing about them in my free time because I can.**

* * *

 **Chapter Five**

Mouth opening in a quiet yawn, I woke up on a chest. A nice chest. A chest I knew belonged to Victor. Smiling, I rested my chin on him as I looked up to find him still fast asleep. Moments like these were some of my favorites. His hair ruffled, body relaxed, face peaceful. Peaceful.

The day before flooded back, then. I was sick. Victor's expression had been drawn and tense yesterday. It was just one day, but it had felt like a lifetime since I'd seen him look the way he did now-content. Yesterday had been full of worry and stress, and it dawned on me that, for the foreseeable future, we would all be feeling that way quite a bit.

A tumor. Cancer. Surgery. _Next week_. My mind caught on those thoughts, the idea of next week centering them all. I'd been given the news less than twenty-four hours before but, with surgery kicking off my treatment _next week,_ it stood out in my mind as the true beginning of what was coming.

Or maybe I was still a little in denial. That was very possible.

As my brain spun, Victor stirred. I paid him no mind until his hand lifted, brushing over my cheek, finally pulling me out of my thoughts. The look of utter contentment had left his face, but at least it wasn't replaced with yesterday's expression. No, now Victor was gazing at me with a mix of fondness and worry.

"Why so troubled, Princess?" he asked softly.

I leveled him with a look. His only response was to sigh and continue his tour of my face with his hand. Cheek, chin, other cheek. Forehead, nose, and then he made it to my lips. A light touch moved over my lips as his gaze warmed.

"We'll be okay," he promised, leaning over to press his lips to mine. " _You'll_ be okay." Another kiss. "We'll all be just fine." Yet another kiss. And then another and another, and then my mind wasn't on _next_ _week_ anymore. It was caught up in Victor.

It wasn't until we made our way down to the kitchen for breakfast, rumpled but smiling as we held hands, that the gravity of what was happening settled back over me. Freezing in the doorway, I edged my way over to half hide behind Victor. The intensity of all of the stares-all six of them-gnawed at me. In the back of my mind, I was somewhat shocked six of them, or seven if you counted Victor, were home. They were usually dispersed, either out on assignment or somewhere else in the house. From the way their attention went right to me when I entered the room, it was obvious they'd been waiting.

The realization brought color to my cheeks. They had been waiting downstairs while Victor and I…

"Aggele mou," Silas called from where he stood by the fridge. "How are you?"

Peeking around Victor to get a better look at him, I saw he was watching me with a smile. No teasing filled his expression-he was genuinely asking about my wellbeing. And maybe trying to help me feel less awkward. "I'm okay," I said. With a sudden burst of courage, I stepped around Victor and into the room, stopping at the counter next to Luke.

"Hey, sweetie," Luke said with a smile. "Want a pancake? I made them with chocolate chips." With a wink, he leaned in closer to whisper, "Double the regular amount of chocolate, too."

North shot him a glare as he rinsed off a dish in the sink. My eyes glazed over for a brief moment because North doing dishes, or any cleaning at all really, was a turn on. Though he could probably just stand there and breathe and I'd want to climb him like a tree. But right now he was placing his dish in the dishwasher, and I wanted to walk over and wrap my arms around him.

I was two seconds away from doing exactly that when North spoke and snapped me out of it. "She doesn't need chocolate for breakfast, Luke."

Luke smirked at him. "Do you really want to deprive our wife of this heaven, brother? I think not."

North's expression turned wicked, his lips tilting up. "Oh, I can give her heaven."

It'd be a lie if I said I wasn't tempted. But then my stomach growled, and my eyes were drawn to Luke's plate. Yeah, those pancakes looked mighty tasty.

Catching my glance, Luke didn't wait for me to say anything before he pulled a plate over and plopped two of the pancakes on it. Nudging the syrup my way, he urged, "Go for it, sweetie."

I felt North watching me as I spread the syrup. "Can I at least fry you up some eggs or something to go with it? Some bacon?"

"Yes!" Gabriel yelled. "Bacon! Bacon would be fucking amazing." He waggled his eyebrows at me from his place beside Luke. "And I guess Trouble can have some, too."

North frowned. "I'd be making it for her, asswipe."

"You could make a few extra pieces."

Not exactly eager for another argument to break out after the tension of yesterday, I broke in. "Could you, North? Please?"

Though he seemed reluctant to give in so easily, North nodded. "Anything for you, Sang Baby."

"So," Kota spoke up. "What are we doing today?"

Before anyone could answer, Owen and Sean strode into the room, causing me to nearly choke on my food-which was, in fact, amazing. Luke had nailed it. I elbowed him lightly in the arm and he glanced over. I gave him a thumbs up and a smile, and his face stretched into a huge grin. It filled me with warmth.

"I think we should have some fun," Nathan said, pulling my attention back to the topic at hand. Apparently someone had asked Owen and Sean what the day would bring and we were back to brainstorming.

Sean scoffed. "Yeah, that's not vague or anything."

"No, no," Gabriel said, "he's onto something. We should have fun."

"With Sang," Luke added.

Gabriel nodded, then jumped off his stool by the counter. "We should have a nail-painting cupcake zombie party!"

I blinked. "Um, it's not my birthday, Meanie."

He waved away my input. "That's not important."

Owen asked, "A nail-painting zombie cupcake party?"

"Yeah," Luke said. "We told you about that, right? We let Sang paint-"

"Yes, you mentioned it," Owen interrupted.

Sean grinned, leaning against the doorjamb with his arms crossed. "I'm in."

"Me, too," Silas said, followed by a chorus of agreements from all of the guys except Owen and North. The latter was busy laying strips of bacon out on paper towels, so he didn't seem too invested in the conversation.

Owen, on the other hand, was studying me carefully. "Does that sound like something you would like to do, Miss Sorenson?"

My nod was immediate. Time with all my husbands, eating cupcakes and watching zombie movies while laughing about what colors I painted their nails? I was so on board. "Definitely. It'll be fun."

The corners of his lips tilted upward. "Then I am in, as well."

Now we just needed one more answer. "North?" I asked uncertainly. Had he even heard what we were planning? He appeared pretty focused on that bacon.

Sighing, he moved over to where I sat, adding a few strips of bacon to my plate, then dumping all but two on a plate in front of Gabriel. "I'll obviously be there. No way I'm turning down time with my Sang Baby. But do we all have to do the nail painting thing? Is that necessary?" He added the remaining pieces of bacon to his plate of toast and fruit, leaning back against the counter to eat.

Gabriel gasped. "Of course you need to get your nails painted!"

"Yeah," Nathan agreed. "We all do. Otherwise it wouldn't be a nail-painting cupcake zombie party."

"It'd just be a cupcake zombie party, which is nowhere near as fun," Luke practically whined.

North rolled his eyes. "You're so dramatic." Then he looked at me. "What do you think, Baby? Do we all need our nails painted?"

I smiled and shrugged. "I think it'll be fun." I paused, uncertain. I'd convinced him to make Gabriel bacon already this morning. Should I really force him into nail painting too? "But, if you don't want to, I understand."

"She may understand, but I don't," Victor said.

"Come on, North," Sean pleaded. "Join the fun. I'm sure it'll make Pookie happy. Won't it?"

Again, all eyes landed on me. Taking my last bite of pancake, I just shrugged again. I'd said my piece on the matter. Now it was up to North-and the rest of my husbands, apparently. I began chewing on my bacon as I watched the debate unfold.

"Is getting your nails painted really so bad?" Kota asked.

"I don't see what the big deal is," Nathan said. "I mean, sure. It's not my favorite thing in the world. But it's not torture or anything."

Victor nodded. "Good point. There are worse things, North."

The room went silent at that, the truth behind Victor's statement weighing everyone down. We all had our own family issues, which could certainly be construed as _worse_. But I had no doubt the _worse_ on their minds was the same one filling mine. The same one I'd been focused on earlier, along with concerns about the ominous _next week_.

"Well," Gabriel said. "Shit."

"He has a point," said Kota.

Another silence descended for a moment until Owen broke it, his voice tight. "Rule for today-no discussing Sang's illness or what is to come. We need a calm day." I liked that idea. I was trying my best to keep my mind on the lighter side, and avoiding discussion, if only for that day, would be nice.

Sean snorted. "Do we ever have a _calm_ day?"

Owen's mouth twitched. "I believe my point is made, regardless."

"So are you in or not, bro?" Luke pressed, gaze on North.

But North wasn't paying a single ounce of attention to him. No, North was watching me. His expression was grumpy, but his eyes… his eyes were something else entirely. I couldn't pinpoint exactly what was shining within them, but the rush of heat it sent through my stomach helped that stare hold me captive.

Breaking our connection, North looked down at his feet. He grunted. "Fine. I'll let her paint my nails."

A smile broke over my face. I hadn't wanted to pressure him but, now that he had agreed, I couldn't deny that I was excited. Some fun with my husbands was the perfect way to relax after the weight of yesterday. Having them all on board one hundred percent made it all the more exciting.

"Okay, sweetie," Luke said, pulling my attention over to him. "If we're going to have a nail-painting zombie cupcake party, we need cupcakes. Wanna help me bake them?" He smiled wide and raised his eyebrows, as if his offer was too amazing to resist.

"I thought it was a nail-painting cupcake zombie party?" Silas asked.

Luke rolled his eyes. "Same thing. So how about it, Sang?"

I nodded. "I'd love to."

And so that was how I spent my day. I moved around the kitchen with Luke, mixing cupcake batter, placing cupcakes in and taking them out of the oven, and frosting the completed cupcakes as well as I could, until Gabriel came in and took over that job because the ones I had frosted looked kind of hideous. Not that he said that. But I had eyes and, not only did I see my work, but I saw the way Gabriel's gaze had widened when he crept into the room to sneak a kiss. He'd wasted no time after giving me a peck, gently extracting the cupcake I was about to work on from my grasp and snatching up the frosting before I could make a grab for it.

"You're fucking cute and all, Trouble, but I've got this," he said. "Go make sure Luke doesn't burn the skin off his hand." Two seconds later, Luke released a yelp and I did as Gabriel instructed.

Gabriel hadn't been the only one to stop in throughout the day. All of them did, some more than others. Silas wasn't coy about it in the slightest, walking in a handful of times and telling me he needed a hug. North apparently needed to drink like five gallons of water, judging by how many times he stepped in to fill his glass. Victor only dropped by once, and that was to actually get a snack, though he didn't seem to deny the perk of getting to see me, since he constructed his sandwich on the counter right next to me. Our arms brushed more times than I could count and I reveled in every moment of contact. Before he left, he gave me a deep kiss. Owen came in twice, both times not disguising his intent to check up on me-and probably Luke, too, because Luke plus baking, pastries, and frosting could easily equal disaster.

By the time all the cupcakes were ready and pizzas were ordered and we were settling down as a family in the living room for our night, I'd already had an amazing day. The nail-painting cupcake zombie party was the cherry on top.

We talked and ate while zombie films, selected by Nathan, played in the background. Sometimes we paid attention to them, but most of the time we paid attention to each other. After I ate some pizza, I prepared to start painting nails while Gabriel claimed my right foot to work on my toenails.

"Who wants to go first?" I asked, glancing around at my husbands. I didn't expect anyone to really volunteer, since the one most likely to do so was currently occupied with my foot, but I was surprised when Owen stood.

"I'd like to, Miss Sorenson," he said, moving to sit near the coffee table with me. Once situated, he smiled. "Can't say I have ever done this before, but it should be interesting."

"Paint his nails pink, Peanut!" Nathan laughed.

Sean grinned. "Or maybe a bright yellow. You know, to show his bright personality."

Shaking my head, I sorted through the colors Gabriel and I had set out across the table. I'd given zero thought to what colors I should do for each of them before that point, seeing as I'd been so caught up in baking with Luke. My hand skimmed over a gray that he'd probably appreciate, but which didn't really thrill me. Perusing the colors some more, because there were a bunch of them, I couldn't help but smile when I found a shiny silver. I snatched it up and twisted the lid off.

"Set your hand flat," I told Owen, holding the brush over his thumb nail. He did as I asked and I sweeped a coat on. "Perfect."

When I was finished with his hands, Owen lifted one up and studied the color. "Nice choice." His voice didn't give much of anything away, but then he shifted his eyes to me and my heart flipped. He may not have been the type of guy who'd ever be thrilled at getting his nails painted, but he truly did appreciate my choice in color for him.

Or maybe he just appreciated that moment. With me.

I was about to lean over for a kiss when Gabriel bopped me lightly on the calf. "Other foot, Trouble."

Giving him my left foot, I looked back over at Owen. But then North rose to his feet and sighed. "I'll just get this over with now."

As Owen moved from his spot so North could take the place, he met my eyes and smiled. Now my heart wasn't only flipping, it was outright dancing a jig. Sure, a kiss would have been lovely. But a smile from Owen? I'd take that any day and cherish it.

There was no question on what color to do for North, so I got right to work. But once I finished, I grabbed his arm before he could try to hurry away. First I dropped a kiss on his cheek, because I appreciated him doing that for me, then I grabbed the pink and hurried to paint quick little hearts on each of his thumbs.

He grunted and I giggled. "Well, I don't hate it," he grumbled. This time he was the one to pause before getting up, leaning over to claim my mouth.

With two down and seven to go, I kept right on painting, only stopping for a short time to nibble at a cupcake. Gabriel worked on my fingernails after I was done with the guys, taking way longer than I took on any of them-even Silas, who I'd decided to give pink polka dots to over the blue on all of his fingers. But when he finished, the results could not be denied. They were so pretty. None of them were identical, the only similarity between them all being the pink. Each nail had pink merged with another color. Red, black, purple, green. One nail was two different shades of pink.

As I looked from finger to finger, my smile grew wider. I knew exactly what Gabriel was doing. Representing all of my husbands right there on my hand, my fingers. I loved it.

My men. Always here, always protective, always supportive. Always loving me. Whether we were listening to a doctor deliver horrible news or sitting around our living room eating cupcakes and enjoying each other's company.

In that moment, I felt content. Sure, I'd likely get upset and overwhelmed again soon, but I took this moment and imprinted it into my mind. I bundled it up and held it close, knowing I'd need this day, this night, to look back on. When the scariness of _next week_ turned into _right now_ and then beyond. I stored the memory away and added it to the part of my mind that was dedicated to one thought, one hope, one belief.

I'd be okay.

* * *

 **Thank you so much for reading!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Nothing, I own. *waits for someone to hand me my award for worst Yoda impression ever***

* * *

 **Chapter** **Six**

The week leading up to my surgery had varying degrees of similarity to the cupcake zombie party. I spent time with my husbands, we had fun, and we tried to remain as lighthearted as possible. We'd have more than enough fodder for worry and stress soon, so, for those few days, we bonded and kept away from any of the heaviness looming.

I didn't get to be with all the guys at once every day, but I did see them all a lot. Whoever was off from assignments and Bob's Diner that day would stay with me. I was given time off from the diner until I was better, but I'd planned on sneaking in and helping out over there when I could.

As it turned out, however, I never got a chance. There was always three or four of the boys with me. We watched movies. We took walks. Went to the park, the zoo, and three separate arcades. My husbands gave me a week full of fun, and I loved it.

On the last day before I went in for surgery, I finally got another day with the entire family. We spent it mostly hanging around the house, playing games, both video and board games. Uncle invited us to drop by the diner for dinner, so that was what we did. Uncle waited on us-or me, in particular-with extra attention. As we were leaving, he pulled me into a long, tight embrace. He probably meant it to be comforting or supportive, but what it really did was cause reality to start seeping back into my skull.

The _next week_ I'd been so afraid of was less than twenty-four hours away. I'd let myself get distracted during a week of happiness with my family, but the time to face reality was fast approaching.

I did the best I could to hide my upset from Uncle, giving him a smile and promising to make sure he was kept in the loop on how I was doing. I thought he bought it because he didn't look at me strangely at all-just with that sad smile he'd been sporting since I arrived. At home, the guys and I settled in for a movie. No zombies or cupcakes this time, but Gabriel was determined to touch up my nails before tomorrow, so I let him go for it. I loved what they represented and was glad to have them set and ready for the next day.

Only a few minutes into the movie and one nail back to perfection, Mr. Blackbourne's voice spoke over the sound of the television. "Are you going to speak up about what is bothering you, Beauty?" Instead of the commanding tone he normally used, Owen's words were gentle. He wasn't angry at me; he just wanted to know what was going on in my mind so he could help.

Still, I wasn't too keen on bringing attention to the mess inside my head. I opened my mouth to brush off the question, but stopped when I met his eyes. Those steely orbs were fixed on me, concern making them shine. I couldn't give him a non-answer. Without thought, I told him the truth. "Tomorrow."

Now everyone was watching me. After a moment someone, probably Nathan, paused the movie. My gaze was locked on Owen. My Mr. Blackbourne. "What is it about tomorrow that bothers you, Miss Sorenson?" he asked.

Gabriel snorted, opening the red nail polish and getting back to work. "You want her to make you a list?"

"Probably easier to ask her what _doesn't_ bother her about tomorrow, Mr. B," Luke said.

Owen didn't even glance at either of them. His eyes never left me. "Beauty."

I blew out a long sigh. Then released a whole slew of word vomit. "We've had a great week-an amazing week, really-and it was so easy to not think about it. When we met with Dr. Roberts and we made the treatment plan, I had one week before things would actually start. It was _next week_. But now it's not next week, it's _tomorrow_. It's less than an entire day away. And I'm not ready. I am so, _so_ not ready. What if something bad happens? Or the doctor finds something horrible? What if I'm worse off than we originally thought? And you're all so worried; I hate it. I have loved this week of being happy and having fun, but it's been weighed down by dread too, and I hate that. And… I mean… I don't know." I finally paused and drew in a breath. "I'm overwhelmed. And scared."

Owen's eyes warmed, understanding and strength mixing to make the most comforting sight I could have asked for in that moment. "Sang," he said. That was it. He didn't say anything more.

After a beat of silence, Kota spoke up. "It's perfectly understandable to be scared, Sang. You don't have to hide that from us. You should talk about it, so we can help you through it."

"Yeah," Silas agreed. "That's what we're here for, aggele mou."

Sean nodded as he added, "Of course you're overwhelmed right now. But we're here for you. You can talk to one of us or all of us, whatever you're comfortable with. Just don't shut us out." His lips twitched. "Especially since _someone_ here just so happens to be a highly skilled doctor and can talk you through those medical concerns you're having. I've been told he'd _super_ attractive too." Now he was absolutely beaming.

Luke snorted. "Who told you that? I heard he was the kind of ugly that scared small children."

It was immature and now was definitely not the time, but I couldn't help it. I giggled.

Sean's eyes narrowed on me. "Oh no you don't! That is entirely uncalled for, Pookie. You get yourself together before you start some trouble." He glared at me in the worst attempt at seriousness I'd ever seen, clearly pleased.

"Ha!" Gabriel practically yelled. "Better let go of that dream, Doc. Her name is Trouble for a reason."

Sean kept on smiling for a few more moments before sobering his expression. "Seriously, though, Pookie. You're worried about the procedure and what may or may not be found. You should let me know when you're thinking that kind of stuff."

"You should let us know when you're worried or scared, or upset at all," Kota corrected.

I didn't know where to look, so I shifted my eyes down to my hands. Seemed like a better option than their expressions, which were brimming with concern. "I know. I'm sorry. I just don't like making this harder for you guys."

"Oh, fuck no," Gabriel said, and then his hand was at my chin, lifting my face so I had no choice but to meet his eyes. "Right now, you worry about one thing and one thing only, alright? You. Don't add other shit to the pot by factoring in us. _We_ are just fine. Are we scared and overwhelmed right along with you? You bet your pretty ass we are. But what you're going through is also a thousand times worse than what we're dealing with. We _want_ to help you. So let us. Don't question how we'll feel or react. We will be o-fucking-kay."

"We are a family, Miss Sorenson," Mr. Blackbourne said. "We support one another. Right now, you need it the most and we are all here for you. If we have any personal dilemmas, we know the rest are here to aid us as well."

I blinked, leaning around Gabriel to see Owen. "That includes me? I want to be here for you too."

That millimeter smile I'd fallen in love with years ago in high school crept across his mouth. "That includes you."

Sitting back, I faced Gabriel again. There were many emotions whirling in his gaze, but the most dominant feature of it all was his ferocity. "We've got you, Trouble. Okay? We've fucking got you." He stared hard into my eyes.

I immediately nodded, the force of his words driving into my soul. "I love you," I whispered.

"Fuck, Trouble," he muttered back, before leaning forward and capturing my lips with his own.

It was a quick kiss, but full of passion. Our worry, fear, devotion, and love all mixed together to release through the contact, mouths pressing and tongues gliding. I pressed closer to him and he welcomed the movement with a hand around my waist.

Honestly, the kiss would definitely have escalated, if not for the fact that we were in a room with the rest of our family. A throat cleared loudly, snapping us out of our kiss.

Thus, the kiss was quick.

Both of us breathing heavy, we returned to where we'd originally been seated and Gabriel lifted my hand, which he'd been working on. His laugh was husky. "Guess I need to touch up a couple of these again. Worth it." Looking at my fingers, I saw two of the nails had smudged polish. My gaze moved to his shirt where I'd been fisting the front of it and, sure enough, there was some nail polish staining the spot. He followed my glance and laughed again. "Absolutely fucking worth it."

"If you horny teenagers are finished," Sean said, "we can get back to the topic at hand."

My smile faltered, but I knew he was right. We needed to talk about...something. I felt a blush rising to my cheeks as I asked, "What is the topic at hand, exactly?"

A few of the guys laughed, while North said, "You're fucking cute, Sang Baby."

"Your medical concerns." Sean answered my question. "You said you were worried something would go wrong, or the doctor would find something terrible. Your surgery will be straightforward, and Dr. Roberts is vastly experienced. The odds of something going wrong are too slim to cause even a little havoc on your mind. And, well...sorry to break it to you, Pookie, but the doctor already found something terrible. Anything he may come across tomorrow will only aid in your treatment-we will be more informed and prepared for the steps that come after the removal of the tumor."

I saw the logic in what he was saying. Dr. Roberts was great at his job. And finding the tumor was terrible. But still… "What if he finds out that I'm worse off than we thought?"

Sean's expression turned grim. "I'm not going to lie and say that's not possible, but I will say it's unlikely. We did a bunch of scans on you, and we feel very confident we have a firm grasp on what we're working with. But if something is found to indicate your condition is worse than already diagnosed, then what I said still stands. It can only aid in your treatment."

We were both tiptoeing around the possibility that treatment might not be enough. Cancer can spread. It can worm its way into places of the body that are beyond help. I understood that, if my illness were of that nature, Dr. Roberts and Dr. Green would have spotted it. But that didn't strike the possibility, even if it wasn't probable.

But we weren't talking about it. I was actually kind of glad about that.

"It'll be alright, Peanut," Nathan said, twirling the remote in his hand. "You'll go in, get that piece of shit removed, and it'll go just fine."

Victor nodded in agreement. "And then we'll go from there."

Heaving out a long breath, I focused back on my fingers, now all touched up and shiny, representing this family I loved so much. My family that was unfailing in its support. "Yes," I said, a faint smile tracing my lips as I looked over Gabriel's handiwork. "Tomorrow will be fine, and then we'll go from there." Finally, I felt like I had the strength I needed to face what was coming next.

* * *

Dr. Sean Green was pretty darn sure he was living in the definition of hell. It was the day of Sang's surgery and she was off in an operating room somewhere, with Phil working on her. Dr. Green had tried to convince the man of how brilliant it would be for Sean to be in that room, too. Sure, Phil was doing the heavy work, but it couldn't hurt for Sean to be present. He'd stand there and be quiet in support of his Pookie. Hell, he'd even resort to handing good old Phil his scalpel whenever he needed it. So long as he got in that room, Sean didn't care.

But Phil gave adamant rebuttals every time Dr. Green tried to talk his way in. Apparently working his ass off to gain the title of DOCTOR wasn't enough to sway the decision in his favor. Phil said it was a bad idea for Sean to be there. That the environment had to be professional, and including him would create potential problems. That Sean was too emotionally attached.

As if being emotionally attached to his Pookie was anything but awesome. And as if Phil wasn't attached himself-it wasn't a secret that the man was fond of Sang, in a grandfatherly way.

But, oh, _that wasn't the same thing_. Phil had reiterated that point more than once.

Sean thought it was a load of bull.

Owen, Kota, and the rest of his brothers took Phil's side, however. Traitors. So now, Sean was confined to a waiting area. He'd tried sitting, but he'd been unable to keep from bouncing his leg anxiously, which led to his current state-pacing.

All nine of the guys were there, but none of them were speaking. Even Gabriel sat silently, waiting. They'd put on a strong front for Sang, but the truth was they were all just as nervous as she had been. While it wasn't likely, there were things that could go wrong.

Exactly the reason Sean thought he should be in the operating room. He'd never let anything go south. He was a damn good doctor, and he loved his Pookie.

"Sean," Owen said, from where he sat between Nathan and the empty seat Sean had vacated. Kota sat on the other side of it, Victor next to him. Across from them was Gabriel, Luke, North, and Silas. Sean had been pacing in the middle of the aisle between their two rows. At the sound of Owen saying his name, Sean stopped in his tracks.

"What?" he practically snapped, turning to face Owen.

The tone of Sean's response seemed to have no effect on Mr. Blackbourne. He met his best friend's eyes and said, "She will be alright."

Sean's eyes narrowed. "I should be in there making sure of that."

Owen shook his head. "No. You are exactly where you need to be right now."

"No offense, but I think Pookie needs me a little more than you guys do right now."

"Miss Sorenson is unconscious and Dr. Roberts is highly skilled. She is in good hands."

Sean lifted a hand, running it through his hair. "So? I should still be in that room! Waiting here… I feel so _useless_."

North snorted, not even glancing up. "Join the fucking club."

And with that, Sean hefted out a sigh. North had a point. Just because Sean was a doctor not being put to use didn't mean the others weren't feeling as dejected as he did in that waiting area. Plopping down into his seat, he leaned his head back. "You're right. I'm being selfish."

"I'm not sure selfish is the right word," Kota said. "You're upset. We all are. I know you feel inclined to hover but, right now, you're in the same position as the rest of us-a worrying husband. Mr. Blackbourne is right. You're exactly where you should be."

Sean gave his curls another tug. "This sucks."

"It does," Kota agreed.

"We will get to see her soon," Owen interjected. "Until then, we must wait together." _As a family_ was the unspoken ending to that sentence, but Sean heard it loud and clear.

"Plus, I don't think Sang would want any of us in there for this," Kota said. "You know she wants to keep our stress to a minimum. Imagine how terrible it'd be to see the tumor being extracted. No way would she want you, or any of us, to go through that. She would want you out here with us."

Again, North spoke without glancing up from where he was staring at the floor. "He's right. Waiting here sucks ass and I fucking hate it, but he's right. Sang Baby needs us to be strong."

"And to do that," Owen added, "we must support one another."

"Which means _you_ sitting in the waiting room with the rest of us," Kota concluded.

Sean understood. He didn't particularly like it, because he meant it when he said Pookie needed him more right now, but that didn't make his brothers wrong. So he dropped the topic and instead focused on something else that had been nagging at his brain. "Do you guys really think I flirt too much and lead on female patients?"

As soon as he finished asking the question, North's head snapped up. "Fuck, yes. And you need to cool that shit. Sang Baby doesn't need to be worrying about what you do when you're not at home."

Sean frowned. "I'm that bad? She worries?" How had he not noticed?

"No," Kota said. "She doesn't seem to worry. Or she hasn't expressed any concern to me."

"Doesn't mean she doesn't wonder," Gabriel muttered, causing Sean's head to turn toward him.

"I'm just nice. It's how I am. I can't help it if some people take it too seriously." He said this, but in his mind he was uncertain. He'd never given the topic much thought before. Maybe he was wrong. Maybe he did go a little too far. But he never ever made any romantic moves on anyone who wasn't his wife. He never even considered it. Anything friendly that came out of his mouth was purely in good nature, not in an effort to start anything.

"We know that," Kota said, before Gabriel or North could reply. The waiting room was not the place for that kind of heated argument, and all of their tempers were understandably sensitive today. "But maybe it's something to keep in mind. Start paying attention during interactions, both to what you say and how the other person reacts. Limit yourself based on that. Many people will hear you're married and recognize you are simply kind. But others won't care and… well, things like the run-in last week will happen. Just be more cautious."

North crossed his arms over his chest. " _Way_ fucking cautious."

Clenching his jaw, Sean looked over at Owen, who had been suspiciously quiet throughout the conversation. Normally he would give advice. He was good at it, excelled in helping to keep the family running as smoothly as possible. But now he was simply observing with a thoughtful look on his face. "What do you think, Owen?" Sean asked.

One of Mr. Blackbourne's eyebrows lifted a smidge. "I don't believe it is what I think that matters. Kota gave solid advice that I agree with, but it is not Kota nor me that you should be asking about this."

Sean blinked, confused for a moment before understanding. "Pookie."

Owen nodded. "You should speak with Miss Sorenson about this. Also heed Kota's advice because, regardless of what she says, she did appear uncomfortable last week when that woman approached you."

Sean's lips twitched. "So tone it down but also talk to Pookie, so she can join the club and tell me to tone it down too?"

"No," Owen disagreed. "Be more cautious, but also speak with Miss Sorenson so you know how she is feeling on the topic. She may need reassurance. She may simply poke fun at last week's situation. But it is a conversation that needs to be had. We're a family. Being open and honest is important."

While he hated that Sang may need reassurance due to his careless conversations, Sean's smile remained on his face. Then a thought occurred to him and it grew. "Reassurance? I can give her that."

Luke rolled his eyes. Gabriel smirked and said, "Such a fucking horndog."

Owen's jaw twitched in what seemed to be an attempt not to smile. "When you get a chance and she seems up to it, talk to her."

Sean nodded. "I will."

As if on cue, a nurse entered the room and walked directly over to their area. Owen rose to his feet immediately, the rest of the men following suit a mere second later. "Miss Sorenson is out of surgery and being situated into recovery as we speak. The procedure went as expected, and Dr. Roberts will be out shortly to speak with you in more detail and let you know where she is, so you can see her."

"We can't go see her now?" Luke practically whined.

The nurse shook her head, an apologetic smile gracing her lips. "Usually the doctor would be the one to come out and speak with you in the first place, but he sent me out to let you know Miss Sorenson was alright in the meantime. He figured you all would be anxious."

"And he figured right," Sean said, placing a friendly smile on his face. "Our worry would be even more eased if we could get back there to see her. We don't need directions, just her room number."

She rolled her eyes a she turned to head back to work. "Nice try, Dr. Green, but your infamous charm won't work on me. The doctor will be out shortly." And with that, she slipped out of the room.

Infamous charm? Crap. Sean really needed to have that conversation with Pookie if he was _infamous_. North was right; she didn't need this weighing on her mind. He'd talk to her as soon as he could, he decided.

But for now, he and his brothers sat back down in their chairs. Even though they waited for Dr. Roberts to show up and tell them more, the weight of the tension filling the room had lessened greatly. The procedure went as expected. They were all itching to find out more, but in the meantime they could breathe deep in the knowledge that the first step of her treatment went alright and they would finally get to see their wife soon.

* * *

 **What do you think? Let me know! The next chapter will be up soon (I hope). Thanks for reading :)**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Ghost Bird series or these lovely Academy boys. C.L. Stone does. Sigh.**

* * *

 **Chapter Seven**

Waking up, I felt groggy and disoriented. I could already tell I wasn't in one of the beds at home—and that I wasn't at home at all, for that matter. The cobwebs were slow to clear out of my brain, so I decided to stop waiting for that to happen and began taking in my surroundings instead.

The room had a slight chill to it. There was a bit of warmth radiating from a spot next to me, and I picked up light breathing when I listened closely. I also heard a steady _beep, beep, beep,_ along with the whir of some machine. Considering the surface underneath me felt distinctly like a firm mattress, I was as close to positive as someone could be when their eyes were closed that I was in the hospital.

If I was at the hospital, odds were in my favor that it was the Academy wing. I was safe.

I resumed taking in my surroundings with my eyes closed. Judging by the lack of outside noise, I'd guess the door was closed. From what I could tell, I was alone in the room with some machines—which I was connected to through an IV needle taped to my arm—and whoever resided in the space beside my bed. Now that I focused on them, I grew aware that they were holding my hand. It was large, warm, and oh so comforting. I knew, without a doubt in my mind, exactly whose it was.

Silas.

Wanting nothing more in that moment than to see his face, my eyes snapped open.

And then right back shut again, because the lights in the room were so _bright_. A weak, raw groaning sound escaped my lips. It was barely audible but, surprisingly, Silas heard it.

"Aggele?" he asked, voice full of concern. "You're awake. Can you look at me, or are you still too sleepy?"

The answer was no to both of his questions. I wasn't feeling too sleepy right then; at least, I wasn't sleepy enough to doze off again without getting a good look at his face first, but I couldn't look at him because I feared I might go blind if I tried. Regardless, I pulled in a deep breath—which _hurt_. My throat was oddly sore.

Sore throat? In the hospital? The puzzle pieces connected in my head, and I suddenly remembered why I was there. My eyes snapped open a second time. The lights were still too bright, but I held my eyes open and let them adjust. After a few moments, I no longer felt like my eyesight was in danger.

Silas' hand squeezed mine. "Aggele mou."

My gaze flew to him, drinking in every inch of his chiseled features. I didn't know what came over me in that moment, but I wanted to touch him. The hand Silas wasn't holding lifted, as I reached toward him. A tugging in my forearm tore my gaze away from his stunning face, while his free hand landed on mine, pushing it back down to rest next to my body.

"Careful," he said. Then his eyes met mine and his hand rose to brush my cheek. A faint smile lifted the corners of his lips. "How are you feeling?"

Captivated by his eyes, I forgot all about the soreness I'd noticed in my throat and tried to speak. All that came out was an achy croak.

Silas winced. "Would you like some water?"

I nodded eagerly.

He stood, moving away from the bed.

Wait, no—I clutched tighter at his hand. He let me hold him close, keeping him from moving too far away. I pointed at his seat, and his small smile expanded into a full blown grin.

"I am not leaving, aggele," he said gently. "Only across the room to get you water to help you feel better."

I'd learned my lesson when I'd tried to speak the first time, so, instead of telling him in words, I just shook my head and pointed at his seat again.

His soft laugh washed over me, and I couldn't help but return his smile. I knew in the back of my mind that I was in the hospital for reasons that were terrible. I also knew that I'd have to address those reasons soon.

But, for now, I simply wanted to bask in the presence of my charming husband.

"Hey, aggele mou," he whispered, leaning closer.

I could do nothing but tip my head questioningly.

He waggled his eyebrows and asked, "You ever wonder why 6 was afraid of 7?"

I pursed my lips, raising my brows. The joke wasn't new, nor was it very original, but the fact that he was even attempting to be funny right now warmed my heart.

He leaned in even closer, his face barely an inch from mine when he murmured, "Because 7, 8, 9." He pecked a brief kiss on my lips, before pulling back with a huge smile.

He really shouldn't have been rewarded for such an old joke, but I couldn't help it—I giggled. I tried to give him an unimpressed look as I did it, so he'd know it wasn't really the joke I was laughing for, it was just _him_. And I loved him for it.

Settling back in his chair, he wrapped both of his large hands around my small one. His smile had dimmed, but it was still hanging on by a threat as he released a light breath. "Not my best, I know. We've been so worried."

I rubbed my thumb over the top of his hand, the only thing I could really do at that moment to prove I was there and I was fine. Or, at least, I thought I was fine. Save for the soreness in my throat, I was perfectly normal...if not a tad sleepy.

"Sean was a nightmare in the waiting room. We'd all expected North to be the one who caused trouble, but Doc...he was practically climbing the walls." His hands began rubbing mine. "Why are you so cold? Do you need another blanket?"

My head was shaking before he'd even finished asking the question. Sure, the room wasn't all that warm, but I was fine. Plus, him getting up to go fetch a blanket was the last thing I wanted in that moment. His hands on mine were more than enough.

"Let me know if you change your mind." Silas was quiet for a short moment, before continuing with his previous topic. "We had to talk him down. The only thing that really seemed to make him feel better was when the nurse dropped in to say you were alright. We all relaxed a bit after that." He paused, his face now solemn. "I am so glad you're okay, aggele mou. I know we are to be strong, and I want nothing more than to always be strong for you, but—" his voice cracked and he stopped, shutting his eyes and resting his head on our entwined hands.

I didn't feel any tears on my skin, but his breathing was ragged. Wanting nothing more than to comfort him, I ran my fingers through his hair. We stayed like that for a few minutes as my husband, my strong, sweet Silas, collected himself.

Finally, he lifted his head, his eyes now filled with tears he wasn't allowing to fall. "I love you," he said, the words surprisingly strong for how upset he appeared. "I love you more than anything, and I hate to see you go through this. But you are strong, and I will do my best to be strong for you. We'll get through this." It was like he was speaking a promise, another set of vows to go with the ones he'd professed to me four years ago. But it also seemed like he was saying them aloud for himself. He was assuring me he'd help me be strong, while allowing himself to admit that this was going to be hard. We needed each other.

We needed each other and the rest of our family.

My own eyes watering now, I lifted our hands and dropped kisses on each of his. _I love you_ , I mouthed, hoping he'd understand.

Judging by the way his smile returned, I'd hazard a guess that he'd interpreted it just fine.

Before we could do or say anything else, the door to the room opened slowly, as if whoever was entering was trying to be quiet. I couldn't help but giggle when I saw Luke tiptoeing in exaggeratedly, hunched over like that'd help him keep the noise down. Sean followed him in, a tired smile gracing his features.

Hearing my giggle, Luke stopped in his tracks, looking exactly like a caught burglar, then gave up the tiptoeing and ran to the side of the bed Silas wasn't occupying. "Cupcake!" he practically bellowed. "You're awake! You slept for so long. Don't do that again; we were worried."

I laughed even harder at his mock serious expression, only to dissolve into painful coughs a moment later.

Silas extracted one of his hands from mine to wrap it around the back of my neck, rubbing soothingly. "She needs water," he said.

"I'll get it," Luke offered instantly, but Sean motioned for him to stay put.

"No. No water yet." I frowned at him, and he dropped his hand to my ankle from where he stood at the end of the bed. "I can, however, go get you some ice chips. Does that sound good?"

Anything sounded good, so long as it aided my parched throat. I nodded.

"I'll be right back then, Pookie. With some ice chips." He started toward the door, pausing just before exiting. "And likely a whole crew of worrying husbands. Brace yourself." And with that, he strode out of the room.

Luke sat himself on the edge of my bed, drawing my attention back his way. "We were all worried, but it's fine now. You're awake and okay and everything will be just fine." He seemed to be forcing a little extra brightness into his words, but I wasn't going to question him. This was hard on all of us—which had been perfectly proven by _Silas_ , of all people, breaking down, if only for a few moments. I found it odd that they kept saying I was okay though. Did they know something I didn't? Was the surgery all I needed? Did I not have to—

I stopped my thoughts in their tracks before I could begin drawing false conclusions. Dr. Roberts would surely come in soon and tell me the state of my condition. Until then, I would enjoy time with my men.

"Hey, why didn't you get her water or ice chips or whatever?" Luke asked, idly tracing my hand with his pointer finger.

Silas grinned. "She didn't want me to go anywhere. I think aggele likes me."

Luke rolled his eyes. "Nah, she probably just wants you for your accent. Chicks dig accents, right, Cupcake?"

Well, I did rather enjoy hearing Silas speak. That wasn't why I married him, but it'd be a lie if I said it wasn't something I loved about him. A blush heating my cheeks, I bit my lip and looked down at my lap. I wanted to fidget, but both Silas and Luke held my hands captive. Not that I was complaining. Their touches were beyond comforting.

Luke laughed. "See! I'm right!" Clearing his throat, he dipped his head so he entered my line of sight. "How 'bout this, love? Do ya like this?" he asked in what was quite possibly the worst attempt at a British accent I'd ever heard.

I smiled, shaking my head as I tried not to laugh. Another coughing fit was not something I wanted to experience right now.

"Cheerio, Sang," Luke said, his accent even more silly and exaggerated. My face was on fire by this point, mostly from trying not to laugh than embarrassment. "Bloody 'ell, she's blushing!"

"Luke," a deep voice rumbled from the doorway. "Cut it out. Now is not the time for this."

I lifted my gaze to see North standing just inside the room. Though his words were grumpy, his eyes shone with amusement. Happy to see him, I waved him closer. He complied, going to Luke's side and nudging him out of the way.

"Blimey!" Luke yelled.

"Really, you should stop," Sean said, as he re-entered the room. "You're ridiculous as always, and I'm sure Pookie is loving it, but making her laugh right now isn't a good idea. At least wait until she eats her ice chips first."

Luke had opened his mouth to continue blathering on almost incoherently—yeah, his accent had been growing more horrendous by the moment, and Sean was right in saying that I'd loved it—but stopped once he realized what Sean had said. "Oh, crap." He moved closer to me, clasping my hand. "I'm sorry, Cupcake."

Tugging my hand from his, I blew him a kiss. He grinned and caught it, then smashed his hand to his mouth. He made kissy noises for a few seconds, before throwing his hand in my direction. I pretended to catch his fervent kisses, then pressed my fisted hand to my chest. Over my heart. Luke winked.

"Give those here, Doc," North said, reaching for the cup and spoon Sean was holding. "I'll feed them to her."

My eyes widened, and I let out a squeak of protest as Sean handed them over. "I want to sneak a peek at her chart anyway."

North settled himself beside me, after pulling over a chair that had been a few feet away. He scooped a piece of ice onto the spoon, then aimed it toward my mouth.

Shaking my head, I tried to grab the cup from him, but that was kind of difficult with one hand captured by Silas and the other compromised by my IV. I let out another squeak, hoping he'd catch my meaning.

North hushed me, his voice as gentle as it'd ever been with me. It made me focus on him, meeting his dark eyes and studying him closely. It took me no more than two seconds to understand that North needed to do this. He needed to help me in some way. He needed me to let him.

So I did. I opened my mouth, and North slid the spoon inside. The piece of ice melted on my tongue, the water sliding down my throat. It felt amazing. I downed another two before I attempted speaking again.

Clearing my throat, I noticed that, while my throat was still somewhat sore, the ice had helped a bunch. I held out my hand to stall North in giving me another ice chip. Looking into his eyes, I spoke, my voice quiet and jagged, "I love you."

Of all the reactions he could have had, the last thing I expected North to do was tear up. I stared at him in shock as he passed the cup of ice and spoon across the bed to Silas, before leaning in and drawing me into his arms. His face situated itself in the curve of my neck and I wrapped my free arm—the one not connected to the IV that Silas had released to grab the cup and spoon—around North's shoulders.

I held him to me as his body shook. As, this time, I _did_ feel drops of wetness hit my skin. As, in a soft voice full of fear and adoration, North whispered over and over that he loved me.

I'd known it before, but it'd never been more clear than it that moment—my men, my husbands, the best, most amazing people I knew...they needed me. They needed me like I needed them, and the idea, the _possibility,_ that I wouldn't be around anymore was tearing them apart.

I needed to be okay. However long it might take, however difficult it might be, I needed to beat this.

And I would. I would give it my all to beat this, to live.

Sang Sorenson wasn't going down without one hell of a fight.

* * *

 **What do you think? Thanks for reading!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Alright, here we are. Chapter Eight. Thank you so much to everyone who's been reading, and an extra special thank you to _CinnamonStix_ and _sillensa_ for reviewing! Reviews are my favorite thing, and y'all made my days. So, honestly and truly, thank you!**

 **Disclaimer: C.L. Stone owns the Ghost Bird series and these characters. Not me (unfortunately).**

* * *

 **Chapter Eight**

About half an hour later, all nine of my husbands were clustered about my hospital room. North was still at my side, clutching my hand and glaring at anyone who tried to stare at his red-rimmed eyes for too long. He'd held me in his embrace until the rest of the guys had started to trickle in. Then he'd leaned back, wiped his face and barked at Sean to go fetch more ice chips, since the ones Sean had originally gotten were very melted by that point. He'd been extraordinarily gentle as he fed me the new cupful, which was amusing, since he was basically threatening death to everyone else around us.

Finally, the thing we'd all been waiting on happened—Dr. Roberts entered the room. He didn't even blink at the full room, instead heading to the end of my bed and glancing around at us. It was an unnecessary gesture. He already had our attention.

"You're killing me, Phil," Sean whined. "Tell us how she's doing."

One side of the doctor's lips quirked up. "You haven't checked her records yourself?"

Crossing his arms with a huff, Sean sighed. "I tried. But you're using the stupid new system, instead of the easily accessible clipboard at the end of her bed. Victor won't help me hack in and see the files you're keeping."

Dr. Roberts lifted a brow. "And by 'the stupid new system,' I'm assuming you mean the _much more efficient_ and _convenient_ system we've been implementing?"

"Not so convenient for me right now," Sean muttered.

The doctor laughed. "Alright. So, Sang. The procedure went as expected, as your husbands have been informed. We removed the tumor and the most worrisome tissue in the area. That said, we're likely still looking at some time in chemo. We caught it relatively early, but the location was troublesome. We're going to keep you here and let you rest for a day or two. Before you're released, we'll run some tests to determine for sure and then we'll go from there."

Sean rubbed his chin as he stared at the wall, lost in thought. "So you're saying chemotherapy may not be necessary?"

"I'm saying it's _possible_ it will not be needed, but, in my professional opinion, it likely will be. If I had to guess, I'd say it'll be a short cycle, but I'd rather not speculate too much until tests are done."

Before Sean could fire off more questions, Owen reached out to shake Dr. Roberts' hand. "Fair enough. We appreciate your help. Is there anything else we need to know, with regards to Miss Sorenson's current state of health? Without speculation?" I noticed Luke and Gabriel give Sean some serious side-eye.

"That depends," Dr. Roberts said. "How are you feeling, Sang?"

"Fine," I said. Everyone stared at me, waiting for me to elaborate. "My throat's sore but, other than that, I feel alright."

Dr. Roberts nodded. "That is to be expected. Your throat will be sore for a few days to a week. It'll be best to stick to foods and beverages that soothe the throat. For now, you're on ice chips, but tomorrow you'll be cleared for actual food. I recommend soft things—jello, pudding, soup. Some tea might be nice."

"I can make her soup," North said, voice hoarse yet strong. His hold on my hand tightened a smidge. "It's healthy and it actually tastes good, Baby. I promise."

Off to the side, Luke shook his head, pointing into his open mouth to mime vomiting.

"Fuck off, Luke," North snapped, without even turning toward his brother.

Dr. Roberts' eyes twinkled with amusement. "Other than that, there is nothing to be concerned about. We're monitoring her now, but it's only a formality. She is, for all intents and purposes, _fine_." He smiled at me fondly. "Until we run the tests, there's nothing to worry about. Once we get the results on those, we'll start deciding our next step."

"One step at a time," Silas rumbled from the other side of my bed, which I hadn't allowed him to leave yet.

Dr. Roberts pointed at him. "Exactly."

"But she's not," Nathan spoke up, causing everyone to turn toward him.

"Not what?" the doctor asked, though he appeared as if he suspected what the answer would be.

Nathan frowned. "She's not _fine_. She has cancer. This surgery didn't just magically make that go away." His tone sounded almost angry, but his gaze was troubled. I did my best to catch his eyes, from where I rested in the bed, but he seemed to be purposely avoiding that contact.

"Mr. Griffin—" Owen started, glancing at me briefly. That kind of annoyed me. I wasn't the one with the issue here; Nathan was. _Nathan_ deserved the attention. We should be focusing on making _him_ feel more secure. Or as secure as we could, considering that fact that he was correct—I was sick.

Dr. Roberts' interrupted, before Owen could say anything chastising or placating. "You're right. She does have cancer. It hasn't magically gone away; I don't have that power. However, this is the type of illness that must be dealt with in stages. How many stages? That is undetermined, until we reach the end."

Nathan's jaw was clenched, signaling that, though Dr. Roberts was being patient, Nathan was close to reaching his limit. "Because it's huge. Cancer is huge. She could never get better."

With his words, two things happened: a weight settled on the room, everyone growing tense, and Silas of all people jumped from his chair and shouted, " _Don't even_ think _it!_ "

Widened gazes focused on the man at my side, his fists clenched as he glared angrily at Nathan. "We're all worried, Nathan, but entertaining horrible thoughts like that is _unacceptable_." Silas was clearly trying to force his voice to sound reasonable, but he couldn't contain the fact that he was seething.

"Mr. Korba," Owen said, in an effort to rein in the situation.

"No!" Silas yelled, causing me to flinch slightly. North's thumb rubbed over the back of my hand soothingly, though he was watching his friend with an intense gaze. "I'm not going to sit here while he says that about Aggele!"

Owen opened his mouth to say something else, but it was obvious from Silas' expression that whatever it was would not work. In an effort to help, I shifted and propped myself up in a more stable sitting position. North's free hand went to my shoulder to assist me, but I didn't really need it. I'd been honest when I told the doctor I was fine, save for the soreness in my throat.

"Hey," I said. My voice was quiet and sounded rough, but it got the guys' attention. All of my husbands and Dr. Roberts were in the room, but I divided my attention between Nathan and Silas. "Come here," I told Nathan, gesturing to where North was.

North didn't appear pleased, but moved over a couple of feet, allowing Nathan to claim the spot he'd just left. After a gentle squeeze, North released my hand as well. I wasted no time in reaching out and stroking Nathan's cheek. "Hey," I said again; softly this time, all for Nathan.

His lips were set in a hard line as he watched me with sad eyes. "Hey," he whispered.

I leaned his way and moved my hand to the back of his neck, adding some pressure. He got the hint and dropped his lips to mine for a short kiss. When we parted, I kept close to him, our foreheads nearly touching. "I'm right here, and I'm okay."

His mouth opened and a small puff of breath fanned my lips. "But you're not." He paused, blinking hard. "I want you to be; I _hope_ you will be...but you're not."

My gaze remained steady on his, hopefully reassuring. There was lots I was unable to do right now because, as Dr. Roberts had said, Nathan had been correct in saying I was still sick. But, if helping Nathan was within my skillset at that moment, I wanted nothing more than to do it. "Right now, I am. I'm right here, and I'm not going anywhere." I pulled in a deep breath and the next words out of my breath were slightly raspy. "And I'll do anything I can to keep it that way."

Nathan watched me for a moment, before closing his eyes and breathing, slow and deep. It made me sad to see him so distressed, when his usual demeanor was self-assured. I was face to face, yet again, with the reality of my sickness—the part that didn't have much to do with the illness at all, and had everything to do with those around me who were witnessing my struggle. The people who loved me and wanted nothing more than to help me every step of the way, but who were facing their own reality of not actually being able to do much.

Or that was what they thought. In actuality, just them being here, loving me, was _everything_.

My gaze remained steady on Nathan, trying to convey that fact, even though _his_ eyes were closed. After a minute or two, he looked back at me, unblinking. Then he said, in the most tender voice I'd ever heard from him—which was a surprise because I'd thought I'd never hear anything sweeter than him speaking his vows on our wedding day, "I love you."

The words were so full. Like I'd been trying to do with my eyes, Nathan was conveying a slew of thoughts with those three words and his gaze. I didn't miss a single ounce of it, though. He loved me. He was here for me. He believed in me. He was scared but he'd be strong for me, despite that.

I smiled, and the corners of his lips rose a tad in response. "I love you," I told him, leaning and adding pressure again so he'd give me another kiss.

Once we'd parted, I tightened my hold on his hand for a second, then turned to face Silas. He was still standing on his side of the bed. His fists hadn't unclenched at his sides, and I could see his chest rising and falling with steady, agitated breaths. The anger in his gaze had eased up a bit, but he wasn't wholly calm quite yet.

Reaching out, I wrapped my free hand around one of his fists. At the touch, he shifted his eyes to me. Gently, he took my hand in his and sat back in his seat. His eyes were on me now and the anger in them had been replaced with determination. "Aggele mou," Silas said softly. "What he said...I cannot let it slide. It truly was unacceptable."

I sighed. "Silas, I love you. And I love the fact that you're so sure—"

He shook his head roughly, not allowing me to finish my sentence. "It is not a point of being _sure_. It's about being positive. Trusting that the doctor can do the right things to make you better, and having faith that they will work. Even _thinking_ that—"

"Oh, come _on_ ," Nathan groaned. "Are you honestly going to tell me that it hasn't crossed your mind? _Honestly_?"

Silas' expression was severe, even as he kept his sweet grasp on my hand. "In moments of weakness, of course. But I do not dwell on those thoughts, nor do I _speak them aloud with aggele mou in the room!_ "

And just like that, Silas' anger was back full force. Nathan didn't back down, however. "We've all thought about it, Si. We don't like it and, yeah, we try not to pay too much attention to it. But ignoring the possibility isn't going to help anyone."

"Then save those worries for when we are not in aggele's hospital room."

Nathan shook his head. "You're not listening to me. I said that we've all thought about it. All of us. _All_."

"Even me," I whispered, bringing both of their attention back my way. "I don't focus on it, like you said, Silas. I haven't even really been acknowledging it much, if I can help it." At that, Silas raised his brows at Nathan like he'd just proven something, but I continued speaking through it. "I don't fault anyone for thinking about it though. I'm not upset that it's been brought up—because it's true. It is a possibility. And if that was on Nathan's mind today, I am glad I got to help him through it." A rueful smile tilted up the edges of my lips. "You're all so focused on getting _me_ through this that you're losing sight of the fact that I'm here and willing to get _you_ through this, too. We're a family. Each of us is a part of it, and that's what family does for each other."

Silas heaved out a long breath. "I just don't like him, or anyone, filling your head with the idea that maybe you can't make it through this. Because they're wrong, aggele. They're _wrong._ "

Lifting Silas' hand to my lips, I pressed a light kiss on his fingers. "Helping any of you through doubts you have won't lessen my resolve any. I'm fighting to get better, no matter what."

Finally Silas smiled, if only a little. "Of course you are."

"Don't hold it against Nathan—or anyone else, if something like this comes up again. It's better to be open about this, and I like doing what I can to help you guys through this. Okay?"

He seemed somewhat reluctant to agree, but he nodded anyway. "Okay."

"I hate to interrupt this serious family moment, but I'd like to add that no one in this room is particularly close to death right now," Dr. Roberts said good-naturedly, from where he stood close to Sean near the end of the bed. I remembered with a shock that the room was full—I'd been so focused on Silas and Nathan that it'd slipped my mind. "I commend open conversations, however. They're good for relationships."

"Thank you, Dr. Roberts," Owen said, clearly in an effort to gear the conversation in another direction. "Is there anything more we need to know for the moment?"

The doctor shook his head. "We're on the right track. Sang just needs to rest up, and we'll work on where to go from here." Stepping toward the door, he said, "And with that, I believe it is time for me to go. I'm sure you know how to contact me, if I'm needed."

Once he was out of the room, Owen shut the door. "He's correct. Open conversations are very good for relationships, and I am glad you three worked that out. Is there anyone else who needs to share? Now is the best time to work through it."

Shaking heads all around.

"Are you sure?" I asked. "Don't hold back, just because I'm in the room." I was tempted to direct my statement at someone, or a few someones in particular, but I decided I probably shouldn't put it past any of them to keep to themselves.

My men nodded.

I met Owen's gaze and he gifted me with one of his infamous millimeter smiles. "I believe addressing the concerns of Mr. Griffin and Mr. Korba were enough for today. Now we can focus on you." He walked around the bed to Nathan's side, causing North to slide further down the bed. I caught him eyeing Silas' side, where there was more open space, since the rest of the guys were scattered around the edge of the room. I didn't pay attention to that for long, though, because Owen dipped into my vision, meeting my eyes.

"You did well, Miss Sorenson," he murmured, then leaned in and swept his lips over mine. Once, twice. I was hoping for a third time, but he leaned back as he raised a hand to stroke my cheek.

I smiled. "We're a family. It's what we do."

His gray eyes softened, and he leaned forward to drop a tender kiss to my forehead. "Yes. It is."

* * *

 **Thank you so much for reading! I'd love it if you let me know what you thought! :)**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hi, friends! So sorry it's taken so long to finish this chapter. I struggled with it quite a bit, and re-wrote the beginning several times. But now it's done and ready to post! Thank you so everyone who left a review, favorited, and followed. I heart you people!**

* * *

 **Chapter Nine**

Kota Lee clutched Sang's hand tighter, glad to finally get a moment with his wife. The entire day had been a rush—Sang going in for surgery, waiting impatiently for news on her condition, and then getting to see her...with the rest of their large family in tow.

The guys had been eager to claim as much time as they could with Sang, striking up conversation, making her laugh, and keeping her as full of ice chips as she desired.

But, as the hours passed, Kota hadn't gotten a turn. Silas held her hand, North fed her ice. Gabriel squeezed her knee. Luke and Sean took turns tickling her toes. All of Kota's brothers got a bit of Sang but Kota couldn't find a way in, to make himself a part of it.

So he stood back, which he was okay with. It was something he and Owen did often, in order to accommodate the others that needed more attention. Usually it wasn't something Kota paid any mind to—because he still got plenty of Sang time—but today of all days it was wearing on him. Even Owen had gotten to share a brief moment with her.

Owen wasn't completely himself at the moment though, another reason Kota needed to stay back.

Owen had shut off his phone. If they'd actually been sharing the terrible news that Sang was sick, this would not have been an issue. The Academy would respect their need to be alone as a family. But, since they had decided to wait until the time between Sang's surgery and when she started chemo to spread the word, the Blackbourne team was still getting requests for missions regularly.

And, since Owen had, understandably, shirked his responsibilities in responding to the requests, it fell on Kota to do so. Which meant he needed to stay near the door anyway, in order to step out when needed.

Finally, Kota had decided enough was enough and had shut his phone off as well. To hell with everyone and everything else—it could all wait. Sang was more important.

Apparently Sang was fed up with her lack of Kota time too because, as he slid his phone into his pocket after turning it off, she said, "Kota Lee, get over here and sit with me."

And he'd been there ever since, right next to her on the bed, hand entwined with hers. He and Sang weren't the only two people in the room, but the other two people—Owen and Sean—had stepped aside and seemed to be in deep conversation. Likely discussing theories regarding their wife's illness and plans for coping with her chemotherapy starting next week. It was a conversation Kota would have been an asset for, but he was loathe to leave the spot he was in right then. All the other guys had dispersed for food and fresh air and to collect things for Sang.

Sang's hand tightened around Kota's fingers. "What's on your mind?" she asked quietly. "I feel like it's been forever since we talked."

Kota raised his brows, a smirk painting his lips. "Oh, really? Because yesterday morning we—"

Her cheeks turned pink as she cut him off. "No, I just mean…"

He laughed. "I know what you meant." His face sobered and he sighed. "It's been a long day."

"I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault you're sick, Sang."

She shook her head. "I know that. I just hate that this is so hard on everyone...that it's happening at all. But that's not what I meant anyway. I'm sorry I didn't make sure to talk to you earlier. You've had that expression on your face all day."

Now Kota's brow furrowed in confusion. He had a _look_ on his face? His mind had been spinning, but he didn't think it was leaking in such a way that might make anyone worry for him. He was fine and, when he felt like he might head in the direction where he wasn't, he took a moment to count. With Sang out of surgery, he could do the count that calmed him most—his family of ten.

Before Kota could say anything, Sang was continuing. "All of this is out of our control, and I know that bothers you. I want you to say something if _you're_ not okay. Please." She sounded so sincere, as her big, green eyes blinked up at him.

"Honestly, I'm fine," Kota said, lifting Sang's hand to press a kiss to the back. "But I hope you know how much I love you."

The most beautiful smile overtook her face, soft and sweet and damn near blinding. Kota took a brief second to thank all that was good in the world for giving him _this woman_. She was his, and he would never not be grateful, no matter what problems they faced.

"And I hope you know that I love you more."

Kota grinned. "Not possible, but I appreciate the sentiment."

Sang giggled and opened her mouth to respond, but another voice broke into their conversation then.

"This is cute and all, but I just ate half a pie and I'm trying to enjoy this cookie, so if you two could refrain from making me puke rainbows, that would be cool," Luke said, laughter in his voice as he claimed the empty seat on the opposite side of Sang's bed to Kota. He had a cookie that had to be bigger than Sang's face in his hand, one large bite already taken out of it. "Besides, I obviously love Sang more than anyone could ever love anything, so that little spat would have been pointless."

Continuing the argument about who loved who more was much less appealing with Luke drawn into it, so Kota focused on the other half of what Luke had just said. "You only ate half a pie? What happened to the other half?"

Luke paused in taking another huge bite of his cookie and pressed his free hand to his heart. "It met a tragic end." He blinked, as if he was getting teary.

"Someone else ate it before you got there?" Sang guessed.

"Worse." Luke shook his head. "North tried to stop me and, when I tried to hold the precious treat away…" He actually took a moment to sniffle exaggeratedly. "I dropped it on the ground. It made the most horrific _splat_."

"Oh," Sang said, her lips twitching. "I'm so sorry."

Wiping away nonexistent tears, Luke nodded. "I appreciate that, cupcake. Your kind thoughts are much appreciated at this time." And then he resumed taking a huge bite of his massive cookie.

But he was held up again—this time by the rumbling of Sang's stomach.

Both Kota and Luke glanced down at the area where Sang's stomach was covered by the blanket. For such a small girl, that was a loud grumble. Kota wished he could help her out and sneak her some food, but he knew there were good reasons she was on ice chips until the morning.

Apparently Luke wasn't privy to those reasons because he leaned over and whispered, "Want some cookie?"

Kota's brows rose. It was rare for Luke to make such an offer, even for Sang.

Sang smiled. "You'd share with me?"

"For you?" Luke said. "I'd do anything." A wink. "Even part with a portion of this scrumptious cookie."

Sang's smile widened, her expression touched. "I love you."

"And I've already mentioned that I love you more. So, is that a yes to the cookie?" He was already holding the treat in front of her face.

Kota frowned. He didn't want to have to be the one to stop this, with Sang being so hungry and all, but—

"Whoa," Sean said, his hand snatching the cookie out of Luke's hand. "Sang's my number one and I know she's probably starving right now, but she seriously can't have food yet."

"But her stomach is screaming for attention!" Luke argued. "Surely you heard it from over there."

Sean shook his head. "It's not about how hungry she is. Sang was on anesthesia this morning. I don't know how much, since I can't access her damn files in the new system, so we're going to have to trust Phil when he says she needs to wait until breakfast comes around to fill that pretty belly of hers." He smiled fondly at his wife.

Luke appeared confused. "What does any of that have to do with letting Sang eat?"

Kota answered this time, his thumb stroking the back of Sang's hand as he spoke. "She may not be able to keep food down yet, even though she's hungry. There needs to be more time for the effects to fully leave her system."

Sang sighed. "Yeah, I'd rather not vomit today. That'd probably be painful." She raised her free hand to poke lightly at the bandage covering the location where the doctor had operated.

"Sorry," Kota whispered, leaning over to brush a kiss across her cheek. "The moment we're given the okay, we'll get you all the food you want."

Sang's expression turned devious. "Even an entire pie, just for me?"

Luke sat up straighter in his chair. "I offered to share my cookie with you—you'd have to share!"

Ignoring Luke, Kota laughed. "Yes. An entire pie, all for you."

"That's not fair!" Luke whined. "I was being so nice with my cookie— _hey!_ "

We all looked over at Sean, who had somehow managed to stuff half of the ginormous cookie into his mouth. He made a happy sound around the food in his mouth, his eyes dancing.

"Cookie stealing asshole." Luke pouted.

"After all that pie you ate, you definitely didn't need any damn cookie anyway," North said as he entered the room, the rest of their family trailing behind him.

Luke glared his brother's way. "Half of that beautiful pie ended up broken on the ground, thanks to you. So don't tell me I didn't need a consolation snack."

North stared at his brother for a moment, and Kota could have sworn he saw the corner of North's mouth twitch the tiniest bit. "There's no hope for you."

"Enough of their childish shit," Gabriel said, squeezing past Luke to wrap an arm around Sang's shoulders, while dropping a kiss to her hair. "How are you feeling, Trouble?"

She shrugged. "Fine. Mostly hungry." A blush fanned her cheeks.

Kota tightened his grip on hers. Just because the rest of the guys were back didn't mean he was giving up his spot at her side. He'd had so few minutes with her. "That's nothing to be embarrassed about."

"I know," she said, then she changed the subject. "So, why did everyone come back all at once? Is there a family meeting planned I don't know about?"

"Actually, yes," Nathan said from his spot leaning against the wall. "Dr. Roberts is going to be here in a few minutes with information about your next step of treatment, and then we're going to talk as a family about how we're going to handle it."

The color was gone from Sang's cheeks instantly. "Already? I thought testing would take time…"

"We may have given him some incentive to speed that process up a little," Victor admitted sheepishly.

"Hey," Kota called softly, drawing his wife's attention his way, her eyes wide. "It'll be okay. We're knocking this out as a family, alright? We can do this."

She took a deep breath, her chest visibly rising, before nodding. "We can do this."

Deep inside, Kota held his fear. He was just as worried as his brothers were, but he kept his locked tight. And, staring into Sang's eyes, finding love and fear shining back, Kota knew he'd remain strong. He'd have to—for Sang. They'd get through this together, with Kota as a solid means of support through it all.

So Kota smiled, sweeping a soft kiss across the back of Sang's hand. "I love you." There were no words Kota meant more than those three. He loved her, and he'd do anything to help Sang get through this.

"And I love you," she whispered back, squeezing Kota's hand gently. Those three words coming from her lips meant the world to him. They made everything—the stress, the worry—worthwhile.

Because they'd make it out to the other side strong and together. Always.

* * *

 **Thank you for reading! :)**


	10. Chapter 10

**Long time, no post. Sorry for that, y'all! But here's chapter ten! :)**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own the Ghost Bird series.**

* * *

 **Chapter Ten**

Dr. Roberts came and left, but I was in a numb haze the whole time. It was confusing, how I went from dealing just fine to barely coping in the blink of an eye. Luckily the guys were there and asking all the right questions—and actually retaining the answers, because all I could recall was the basics.

Six weeks of chemo.

One session a week.

My husbands' faces were set in concentration as the doctor spoke. When he left, a handful of them followed to talk even more. I didn't want to ask why they hadn't just said everything they needed to say when Dr. Roberts was in the room.

Surprisingly, Kota remained by my side the whole time, my hand tucked snug in his. I'd figured he'd be one of the guys to speak more with the doctor, but he showed no desire to leave me anytime soon. We both watched Luke and Gabriel having a muffled argument over by the door, until Mr. Blackbourne—who had also stayed—said, "It sounds like it would be better for you both to go."

Gabriel rolled his eyes, but Luke grabbed his elbow and tugged him out the door. "We'll be back."

"Later, Trouble!" Gabriel called.

I turned my eyes to Owen. "What was that about?"

"Pie," he said, deadpan.

And for some reason, it set me off on a little giggle fit. The answer wasn't surprising, because _Luke_ , but Owen saying it so seriously… I couldn't stop giggling.

Owen's lips quirked into his special little smile as he watched me catch my breath. Then he asked, "How are you faring after the meeting with Dr. Roberts?"

That dried my laughter right up.

I shrugged, refusing to give into the urge to fidget. "It is what it is."

He studied me closely. "Do you have any questions?"

The question had barely left his mouth before my head was shaking. I didn't even want to discuss this now. I wanted to just _not think about it_ for a little while. That was reasonable, right?

Apparently so, since he didn't push it. Instead, he changed the subject. "Would you like more ice chips? I can go grab some for you, if you'd like."

My throat had gone dry at some point while Dr. Roberts had been talking, so the offer was much appreciated. I forced a smile, to show this to Owen. "Please."

He nodded and stood, leaning forward to drop a light kiss on the top of my head. "Of course. I'll be just a moment."

And now it was back to just me and Kota. His thumb was stroking my hand soothingly, and I let myself relax. I met his eyes and asked, "How are you?"

"I'm..." he paused. "Well, honestly, my mind is spinning. There's so much to look up and learn, to make sure we're prepared and take the best care of you. We have Sean, so that works in our favor, but it can't hurt to be well informed." His gaze scanned my face. "Are you sure you don't have any questions? Dr. Roberts kind of dumped a lot on us."

If my brain hadn't been in utter discord, I might have barked out a laugh. Yeah, he dumped a lot on us—except I'd caught next to none of it. All I knew was how long I'd have treatments for, and how often during that time period I'd have to come in for it. Other than that, I was clueless.

"No," I said, hoping Kota couldn't tell how breathless I truly felt. "No questions."

He pursed his lips. "If you'd like, I could share some of my research with you—"

" _No_ ," I said immediately, interrupting the rest of his suggestion. "I love you for offering, but no. I don't want to research. I don't want to know more. I don't want to see the statistics and possible effects and outcomes. This isn't like other things—learning won't help me succeed. I just want to do exactly what the doctor says and hope for the best." I stopped for a second, taking a breath and surveying the shocked expression on Kota's face. Then I rushed to add, "That doesn't mean it's bad that you're learning all you can. Or if any of the other guys are, that's not bad either. Everyone copes in different ways. And I'm glad you know all the right questions to ask when we're with the doctor. Me, though...I just...can't."

Kota's fingers squeezed mine. "Hey. It's okay. I get it."

I frowned. "I'm being terrible. All I retained from everything Dr. Roberts said was that it'd be six weeks of chemo, with one session each week. And I know he said a whole lot more. But I didn't actually hear any of it."

He lifted my hand to his lips. "You're not being terrible. You're dealing with this the best you can. And if that means you depend on the rest of us to know the details, then that's okay." He leaned forward, kissing first my cheek then my mouth. His forehead met mine and he whispered, "We're going to be okay."

I pulled in a short breath through my nose. "Yeah?"

Kota smiled, sitting back in his seat. "Yeah."

My heart melted. If nothing else good came from this situation, at least now it was inarguable that my husbands were the best. And that I was beyond lucky to have them.

Mr. Blackbourne returned then, a cup of ice in one hand and a spoon in the other.

"I can feed them to her," Kota offered, reaching out to take them from Owen.

But Owen pulled his hands back. "I believe I will take this duty, Mr. Lee."

"Or," I said, "I could shovel ice chips into my mouth myself. I'm not two, you know."

Both Kota and Owen looked over at me like I'd just started speaking gibberish. "We are very aware of the fact that you're a grown woman," Mr. Blackbourne said, his voice heavy with meaning that had my cheeks heating. "However, I'd be pleased to assist you with this."

Then his lips tipped into an actual smile—even larger than his usual millimeter smile—and that was how I ended up being fed ice chips by Owen, while Kota held my hand and chatted quietly.

* * *

The next morning, all of my husbands were hanging around my room waiting for my discharge papers to be filed, so we could all go home together. Mr. Blackbourne had tried to talk some of them into taking one of the cars and going ahead of us, but no one would budge.

So, together, we would leave.

It was almost noon by the time Dr. Roberts had everything signed and cleared for me to leave. It was only a brief reprieve, since I'd be back in a few days to begin treatment, but I was grateful to go home.

I rode in the front seat of North's jeep, North holding my hand the entire way. "Sang Baby?" he said.

"North?" I asked, not particularly liking his tone.

His thumb soothed over my hand. "I know you have a shit ton on your plate, Baby."

I gave him a sad smile. "I could say the same about you. And the rest of the guys."

"We're okay, aggele," Silas said from his spot in the back. "We just worry about you."

I glanced back at him. "That goes both ways."

North's hand squeezed mine. "Don't you waste any time worrying about me. Or any of us. You take care of you, and that's all we need. Got it?"

Taking a page out of my husbands' book, I lifted his fingers to my lips and pressed a kiss to them. "You're so sweet."

"I'm not," he said. "I just love you."

I grinned. "And I'm beyond lucky."

North scoffed but didn't argue. Instead, he squeezed my hand again. "Back to what I was originally trying to say. I know you have a lot of shit on your plate, so feel free to tell everyone to fuck off when we get home and they try to call a family meeting."

"Do we have a meeting planned?" I asked.

"I heard Kota talking about calling one," Silas said, reaching forward to rest his hand on my shoulder. I smiled back at him and he grinned. "North is angry about it."

I tilted my head, peering over at North. "Why? Family meetings aren't bad."

North frowned. "It's all the guys trying to step over each other to go with you to your treatments. You shouldn't have to deal with that shit."

"Can't blame them for wanting to go," Silas said.

"No, but they don't have to force Sang Baby to listen to their arguing either."

"Um," I broke into their conversation, "I actually don't mind."

Silence.

Then, "What?" from both of them. Silas' curious, while North's was practically a snarl.

I tried to pull my hand from North's so I could fidget but his grip held firm, so I lifted my free hand and pressed my pointer finger to my lip. "There isn't much I can do for you guys right now. You're all doing things for me. Making me feel better and bringing me things I need. I want to do my part too. And if all I can do is sort out who goes with me when, then I'm going to do it."

"Sang Baby." North's tone was gentle.

"You don't owe us anything, aggele," Silas murmured, his deep voice warming my chest.

I shook my head. "It's not about owing anyone anything. It's about me basically being useless right now—"

North cut me off before I could finish, "You will never fucking _ever_ be useless. You're too important. So, _so_ damn important, Baby." He sighed. "Shit."

"Just let me do my part," I whispered. "I don't mind."

Turning onto our street, North nodded. "Fine. But if those assholes get to be too much, you let me know and I'll take care of it."

My lips twitched as I imagined what him _taking care of it_ would entail.

"Or tell me," Silas said quietly in my ear. "I'll take care of it. Reasonably."

North scowled, obviously hearing Silas' input, and I couldn't help but giggle.

We pulled up to the house then, apparently the last to arrive, since the rest of my husbands were milling around in the front yard. Once the jeep was parked, my door was opened and Victor was offering me a hand to help me out.

"Happy to be home, Princess?" he asked with a smile.

"Absolutely." I smiled back.

"Alright," Kota said loudly, cutting through the chatter. "Inside. Family meeting."

Victor's arm slid around my shoulders, leading me inside. "Unless you don't feel up to it? This can wait."

I shook my head. "It's okay. I had this conversation with Silas and North during the ride here, actually."

"Okay. But if at any point this gets to be too much, just say the word."

Pressing into his side, I kissed his cheek. "I love you."

He grinned as we sat down on one of the couches, tucking me into his side.

Nathan plopped down on my other side, sliding in close too. "You okay, Peanut? Do you need anything before this mess begins?"

I couldn't help but laugh a little. They were all so pessimistic about how this meeting would go. "Maybe some water?"

"I'll get it for you, Baby," North offered, disappearing down the hall to the kitchen before I could respond.

While he was gone, everyone got situated. Silas somehow fit himself onto the couch with us, while the rest of the guys chose seats around the room. Kota and Owen remained standing, though Owen was off to the side. If I had to guess, I'd say they were worried about how the family meeting would go too and wanted to be prepared to bring it back into control if it got heated.

North returned, handing me a glass of water and sitting on the floor in front of me, with his back pressed to my legs. It was comforting, being surrounded by men I loved. I placed my free hand on the top of North's head, gently toying with his hair.

"If we're all situated, we can officially start this meeting," Kota said, bringing all our attention to him. "I'm sure everyone is aware of what we need to discuss."

Sean raised his hand. "I think it goes without discussion that I should be able to accompany Sang every time she has a treatment."

"You know that's not fair," Victor spoke up from beside me.

Sean shrugged. "My medical knowledge could be helpful."

"That's what Dr. Roberts is for," Nathan said.

Sean rolled his eyes. "Oh, come _on_ —"

"That's enough," Kota interrupted. "Before we talk about who can go to which sessions, maybe we should decide how many of us should go to each?"

Gabriel leaned back in his seat. "I don't see why the fuck we all can't go. This is important."

"I'm not sure Sang would be comfortable with that," Kota said.

"Maybe," Mr. Blackbourne said, "we should ask Miss Sorenson what she'd be comfortable with. Instead of simply assuming."

Kota frowned but nodded. "Right." He looked at me. "Sang? What do you think?"

All of their eyes landed on me and I shifted in my seat. I wanted to help, but I wasn't sure what to say. Could all of them come with me? Should they? That probably wouldn't be a good idea. I needed to pick a certain number and then we could all go from there.

I bit my lip. "It's probably not a good idea for everyone to go every time."

Kota nodded, but North tipped his head back to watch me. "Good idea or not, Sang Baby, if you want us all there, we'll all be there. Just say the word."

Running my hand through his hair, I nodded. "I know. But I'll be able to see everyone after. I should chose a certain number for the actual treatments. Maybe three?" My mind ran over that idea and I liked it, so I said, "Yes. Three at a time."

Kota rubbed his hands together. "Three. Okay. So maybe we should divide into threes and each group can be assigned days?"

"But that wouldn't allow for me to go to every session," Sean complained.

"Doc, you can't go every time," Luke argued, sounding annoyed.

"Medical knowledge," was all Sean said in response, as if that won the argument.

Luke crossed his arms over his chest. "Medical knowledge my ass. We all love her. We all want turns. So get over yourself."

I raised my hand, trying to get their attention so they'd stop fighting. "Hey."

" _Get over myself_?" Sean fumed. "What—"

"Hey!" Silas shouted, causing both Sean and Luke to whip around to face him. "Aggele mou is trying to say something."

"Sorry, Sang," Luke said.

I gave him a tiny smile, though I didn't really feel it. I hated that they were so upset about this—that this was even a thing to argue about in the first place. I knew it wasn't my fault, I didn't ask to get sick, but it was upsetting regardless.

However, I needed to hold it together. They'd been supporting me through this, and now I needed to do this small thing to help them.

"Sean, Nathan, and Victor. North, Silas, and Owen. Kota, Gabriel, and Luke. Those are the sets of three. Sean and his group can go to the first treatment and the fourth. North's group can go to the second and the fifth. And Kota's can go to the third and the sixth. There; problem solved." I was surprised at how confident I sounded, when on the inside I was shaking.

"But Pookie—" Sean started.

I held up my hand, refusing to let him say anything to make me second guess my decision. "No. I know you love me. I know you _all_ love me. But you have to remember that I love you _all_ too. So I need to be fair. It's the only way this works."

He opened his mouth to argue, but I continued before he could say anything. "And I would not appreciate you making me feel bad about my decision." I blinked at him. "It's not like I won't be able to see you before and after. It's just during that needs to be more controlled."

At that, Sean nodded. "It's after that you'll need us most, I think."

I frowned, not wanting to think too hard about why he'd say that.

Victor's hand folded around mine. "You'll be okay."

I took a sip of my water, then leaned into Nathan. "Yeah," I murmured. "We'll all be okay."

* * *

 **Thank you so much for reading! Let me know what you think by leaving a review, and the next chapter will be posted as soon as it's complete :)**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

The days between surgery and my first treatment passed in a blur. They were spent holing up at home, enjoying the calm before the storm. It was also during this time that Owen and Kota informed the Academy of my illness, but they didn't go into details of that with me—for which I was grateful. I imagined there was worry. Offers of support. An overflowing of concern. None of which I particularly wanted to focus on, no matter how well meaning.

I liked having a few days to relax with my husbands and pretending, if only for a little while, that everything was normal.

It was good I claimed my time and savored it: Those quiet moments with Victor. The giggles with Luke and Gabriel. Rolling around with Nathan. Silas stealing hugs and frequently sneaking kisses. Whispering under the stars with North. Playing silly games with Sean. Cuddling with Kota and snuggling with Owen.

Because in the next six weeks when things got tough and miserable, I could look back on those moments together...and smile.

Sean, Nathan, and Victor accompanied me to my first session. Putting Sean in the first group turned out for the best because his apparent ease at the unfamiliar situation relaxed me as we entered the room.

"Since this is your first week and we aren't quite sure how you will be affected yet, we're gonna have you right up on the bed. If you end up not needing it, we can put you in a less formal location with a chair instead of a bed next time," the nurse said, gesturing to the bed as she fiddled with a machine next to the bed. "I'm going to grab your bag real quick, then we'll get you hooked up." She turned on her heel and left the room.

"She needs a bed?" Nathan asked, pulling a chair over from the side of the room and turning it around to sit on it backward. "I thought this was just, like, an IV."

I slid onto the bed, grabbing Victor's hand to sit up there with me. "She said I might get a chair next time."

Nathan smiled. "Your very own chair."

I gave a small smile back despite my nerves. "What I've always wanted."

Sean was studying the machine the nurse had been setting up. "It's dependent on how her body reacts to the treatment. Some people can handle a chair while the bag is emptying, the effects not taking a toll until later. Others are affected quickly and strongly." He turned to me with a grin. "But don't you worry your pretty little head about that, Pookie. We'll take care of you either way."

"I get to go home today, right?" I asked, suddenly worried. "Needing the bed doesn't mean they're going to admit me and then I'll be stuck here until whenever?"

He shook his head. "No, they wouldn't admit you unless—" he stopped, forcing another smile. "As I said, don't you worry your pretty little head. Everything will go smooth as pie."

Victor snorted. "Smooth as pie? I don't think that's a thing people say."

"It's a thing I say," Sean sniffed. "Tell him, Mrs. Green."

I turned to Victor. "Sean is oddly obsessed with pie so he likes to make up phrases so he can insert pie into as many conversations as possible."

Nathan laughed. "She's onto you, Doc."

"I feel betrayed," he said, but humor filled his voice.

The nurse walked back in then, hooking a bag to the IV pole next to my bed. Sean stepped back a smidgen to give her room but watched everything she did like a hawk. "I'm just going to get you situated, sweetie," she said, and I closed my eyes as she got everything connected—to the machine and me. Victor squeezed my hand. "All set. Now we let the bag empty, and when it's done you get to go home. If you need anything or there are any problems, feel free to press the button. Any questions?"

Sean's eyes wandered over the medicine set up. "Are you sure this is the right treatment? Nothing got mixed up by accident?"

The nurse blinked, peering over at the bag and machine before looking back at my husband. "Is there a reason to think it's incorrect?"

He narrowed his eyes. "No, but you double—no, _triple_ checked, right?"

Nathan rolled his eyes. "We're fine here. We'll let you know if we need anything. Ignore this paranoid ass."

She nodded and didn't wait for Sean to confirm before leaving. Sean turned to Nathan with a sigh. "How could you do that? First Pookie, now you. So many betrayals."

"You poor thing," Victor said.

"I know, right? Thank you for your consideration, Victor."

They went back and forth a little more but I wasn't paying attention. I was eyeing the bag of chemicals. Maybe if I stared at it long enough, it'd empty quicker and I'd get to go home and get some sweet family time. I felt okay still. Maybe I'd be lucky and the feeling would last and I'd only get the weakest possible symptoms. I'd be able to act close to normal and the family wouldn't have to worry so much.

And maybe I wouldn't have to be so scared.

"Hey," Victor murmured, squeezing my hand to get my attention. "What's up, princess? You doing okay?"

Pulling myself out of my short reverie, I nodded. "I'm fine. We probably should have brought something to do."

"Actually," Nathan said, reaching into his pocket, "I've got us covered." He held up a deck of cards, waggling his eyebrows.

"Perfect!" Sean pulled over his own chair. "Strip poker!"

I couldn't hold back my loud "ha!" at that while Victor shook his head. "Terrible idea."

"You're no fun."

"Something simple," I said quietly, my lips turned up the tiniest bit. "I'd definitely lose anything that required actual focus."

Nathan turned his chair around, pulling it even close to the bed. "Go Fish it is then."

We played for a little while, me doing my best to hide my cards from Victor while he didn't try to conceal his from me at all—giving me a huge leg up. I ended up winning the first hand, but Sean mock whined about us betraying him again _I can't even win a children's card game now because my dearest family is against me?_ So Nathan, Victor, and I put our effort into beating him. Nathan won that hand.

During the third hand was when I started to feel it.

My head felt light, and my eyes wanted to close. I tried to keep my gaze steady on the cards between my fingers, my ears trained on what my husbands were joking about around me. But my arms were getting heavier along with my lids. And were my shoulders drooping? When did the cards get so heavy? They were basically just pieces of laminated paper. They weren't meant to drag my hands down into my lap. But when my eyes opened again, there they were, my cards showing to the guys.

"Getting kind of obvious there, Pookie." Sean laughed, but it was cut short. "Hey, you alright?"

Nathan said something next, but his voice sounded so far away it was tough to focus on it. Victor was right beside me so I caught pieces of his response. "Should...the nurse?"

All I heard after that was "normal," from who I guessed was Sean since he would be the one to know if this was normal, right? My eyes were solidly shut at this point, and I felt gentle hands pressing me back into the pillow. The blanket was pulled up over me, and who I assumed was Victor cuddled next to me as I settled in.

I must have fallen asleep then because the next thing I remembered was Victor whispering in my ear, "Come on, Princess. We need to get you up and into the chair so we can go home. Then you can sleep all you want."

A weak moan slipped from my lips. "I have to wake up?"

"Just for a few minutes. You can go back to sleep in the car if you'd like. But we need you awake to get you out of here, okay?"

Nodding, I sighed. "Yeah." A pause. "Help?" Everything felt heavy, all the way down to my bones.

"We've got you, Peanut," Nathan said, grabbing one of my arms while Victor supported my back. Together they helped me into the wheelchair that had appeared next to the bed.

Sean leaned over me, peering into my droopy eyes. "How you feeling, sweetheart?"

I blinked. "Exhausted."

He nodded. "Sounds about right. We'll get you home and you can rest up for as long as you need." He said a few more words to the nurse who was standing by the door, and then we were off. I let my eyes close as we entered the elevator but forced them back open when we exited them on the ground floor. I didn't know the rules or anything, but the last thing we needed was to get stopped and held here longer because I fell asleep on my way out. I wanted to go home. I wanted one of the big, comfy beds in our house. A fuzzy blanket or three. And I wanted the freedom to sleep until this weariness subsided and I felt somewhere close to normal again.

Both Nathan and Victor helped me into the backseat of the car while Sean supervised. Nathan slid in beside me, buckling me in and drawing my head onto his shoulder. I heard doors slam, then Nathan said in my ear, "You can rest now, Peanut. We'll be home soon."

I didn't remember anything after that. Maybe the vague feeling of being carried? Possibly the softness of a pillow beneath my head? But those details may have been my mind trying to fill in gaps because I slept like a rock until later that night.

Lurching out of bed, I registered an ache in my bones but focused instead on the more pressing issue—my protesting stomach. I stumbled to the bathroom, bumping into the door jamb on my way, and collapsed in front of the toilet.

The I emptied out the contents of my stomach. I hunched over the toilet for barely a minute when I felt soft hands in my hair, pulling it back.

"You're okay, honey, just let it out," Sean's serene voice murmured in my ear. He kept on soothing me until there was nothing left and I was just gasping.

"Ow," I said, holding my stomach.

Sean stroked my head and pressed a kiss to my temple. "It's rough, I know. But you'll be alright."

I kept breathing deeply, but couldn't help but let a few tears escape as I flushed the toilet. I knew this wouldn't be easy, but I felt like such garbage. I wasn't even sure if I could stand long enough to brush my teeth, let alone if my legs could carry myself back to bed.

"Oh, no, Pookie," he whispered urgently, swiping away the wetness trailing down my face. "No, no, no. No need for tears."

I knew he was trying to comfort me. To be supportive. But I wasn't in the mood for it right then. So, I glared at him.

He cracked a smile that was clearly forced. "Yeah, I'm not helping. You ready to go back to bed? I'll help you."

Shaking my head, I croaked, "My mouth." I swallowed to try to clear my throat and cringed at the taste. "I need to brush my teeth or something."

Sean nodded. "Okay, how about some mouthwash? You're probably bone tired; I doubt you want to stand around brushing."

That was actually a helpful suggestion—and now I felt bad for glaring at him. Tears filled my eyes again. "Perfect. I'm so sorry, Dr. Sean. I know you're just trying to help. It's not your fault I don't feel well."

He shook his head. "What do I keep telling you? Don't worry. I know this isn't easy on you."

"Not easy on you either."

A frown turned his lips down as he handed me a cup of mouthwash. "That doesn't mean it's up to you to put aside your struggle to make me feel better. I'll feel better when you're healthy again. All of this right now? Are steps needed to get there. So do not worry about me while you're working on healing. I'll be fine. I'm here to make sure you are too."

I met his eyes, full of love and sincerity, for a moment before looking down. As I swished the liquid around in my mouth, I weighed his words. After spitting it out, he handed me a hand towel to wipe my mouth. I met his gaze again. "You know I love you, right?"

The smile that graced his face was genuine this time. "Of course. Just as I love you. More than anything."

"We'll be okay," I said, reiterating what he'd been telling me the whole time.

He nodded. "That's right. Ready to go back to bed?"

"Yes." He slowly helped me back into his bed. Smart move on the guys' part for having me sleep here. I wondered if it was only for tonight or until we all had a better grasp on how this would be. A thought occurred to me. "What time is it?"

We were cuddled together and apparently he didn't want to let me go, so he rolled us a little so he could check the clock over his shoulder. "About one in the morning."

My eyes widened. "Wow. I slept long."

He gave a short laugh. "You'll be doing a lot of that for the next day or so. It's normal. Your treatment takes a lot out of you." His soft voice was so soothing, I felt my lids falling closed again.

But I had to ask another question. "Will it be like this every week?"

"I don't know, Pookie," he said, his hand stroking up and down my spine. "We'll have to see. It's possible every week is like this. It's possible your body adapts a bit to the treatment and the later weeks are better. But, I hate to say this but I have to be honest, it's also possible it'll get worse. Your immune system is going through hell. And there are other side effects that take some time to begin."

I bit my lip. "I don't want to know about those later side effects. Not now."

Sean pressed a kiss to the top of my head. "You don't have to worry about any of that right now. All you have to do is get some rest. I'll be with you the whole time."

That was comforting. I liked knowing he'd be here. That he'd stay. Not surprising, seeing as he—just like the rest of my husbands—had basically ceased working for the time being. But now that my treatment was actually happening, I was glad I wouldn't have to wake up without him by my side.

"Love you, Sean," I told him again. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, sweetheart," he murmured, kissing my head again. "I love you."


End file.
